


Icy Shadows

by AutumnAlchemist



Series: Shadows of the Past [3]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Blizzards & Snowstorms, Blood, Body Horror, Canon-Typical Violence, Eye Trauma, Frostbite, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Legend and his foul mouth, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Magic, Mild Language, Minor Injuries, Minor Violence, Possession, Scars, Serious Injuries, Snow and Ice, Transformation, Wild and his never-ending supply of items, adding tags as I go, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:15:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22327705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnAlchemist/pseuds/AutumnAlchemist
Summary: When the Links are dropped into the mountains in the middle of a harsh blizzard, they must find a way of making it up the mountain and into shelter. But what lurks in the snow, coming back from the past to hinder their progressLinked Universe belongs to jojo56830 on Tumblr, and all information can be found on the LinkedUniverse Tumblr page.
Series: Shadows of the Past [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1607149
Comments: 36
Kudos: 253





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So i thought my previous story would be one off... I guess it's no longer so! Here is a continuation from the previous story. I hope you enjoy and once again, I would love to hear any advice to do better with my writing and how to portray the Links.

The first thing that Twilight registered when he awoke was how cold it was. It sank into his whole body, making it difficult to move around. He could hear the wind howling in the distance, but the ground and air left him shivering. Sitting up, he groaned as he attempted to open his eyes, but felt them crusted with a dusting of frost.

He managed them open to see the fact he and his other companions were in a small cave, the few not suited for colder climate or ill-dressed shaking like leaves in a storm. He took a glance outside but could only see white. Did they switch in the middle of sleeping? Who was last on watch? He didn't want to think about having been ambushed, and moved himself over to the nearest person, which was Wild.

“Champion. Come on, wake up!” He hissed, teeth chattering as his breath fogged up his vision. The scarred Hero was slow to stir, but when he did, Twilight moved out of the way from the other jolting up and nearly knocking their heads together.

“Wh-where are w-w-we?” Wild asked, shivering as his teeth chattered from the cold as well. Twilight shrugged as he moved to pull his pelt closer.

“G-gotta get something w-warmer on,” Wild managed before moving his hands to his cold slate. Twilight knew the other was resourceful, having probably a few pairs of clothes to use, and began to move around and start to rouse the others.

“By Din's ass it's fucking cold!” Legend's shout was the closest thing to waking up everyone, the Hero trying to take the hem of his long tunic to put it over his knees and under his behind, holding himself close to keep some warmth in. Twilight couldn't help but chuckle, still cold himself.

“Th-that's what you get f-f-for not w-wearing pants,” he managed out, giving the other a shove as the sour Hero yelped when a patch of exposed skin touched cold stone.

“I'll admit... it's cold...” Time managed out, rubbing his hands together to attempt to bring warmth back into the digits.

“Anyone have an idea on where we are?” Warriors questioned, moving to pick up Wind as he shivered violently in an attempt to give the sailor some extra warmth.

“Not my place. I don't remember any snowy mountains,” Sky managed, helping to pull Four into his own arms and give him warmth.

“Not mine....” Hyrule whispered, attempting to conjure some magic fire but he kept shivering too badly to get his hands steady. Four shook his head, unable to speak with his whole body shivering.

“I remember only one place that had snow... but this isn't it.” Time looked up when Wild handed him a circlet with rubies in it. The survivalist was donned in a warm looking doublet, so it would seem he didn't need it. Time put it on, giving a surprised 'oh' when he felt the warmth radiating all over him and making it much more bearable in the cold.

“I didn't have any snow places in my Hyrule. So... that leaves,” Warriors paused as he counted heads. “At least Farmhand, Champion, and Legend to have some place in the cold.”  
  
“C-Count me out! I n-never had anything like th-th-this mountain in my adventures! Only one dungeon a-a-and just dealing with chaotic seasons!” Legend shouted, taking the potion bottle Wild held out to him and gave it a look.

“It'll make it so you resist the cold better,” was all Wild said, moving to hand another elixir over to Warriors and Wind.

“So, who's place is it?” Hyrule asked, having managed to conjure a flame and scooted himself over to Sky and Four to share the warmth.

“I'm not sure...” Twilight mumbled, accepting the elixir himself and downed it, giving a face. “I will never understand what you put into these things, and I don't want to know,” he groused, handing back the bottle.

“No, no you don't...” Wild mumbled. Twilight took a moment before he ventured out to the mouth of the cave, blinded by the snow for a moment and nearly knocked over, but when it cleared for just a minute, he knew where they were.

“We're in my world... Snowpeak Mountain,” was what he stated when pulling himself back in, hair disarray from the violent blizzard outside the cave.

“Well... there's some good news,” Time sighed, rubbing his face.

“Let me see if the exit is iced over. If it is... then I know where we can go to seek some shelter for the rest of the storm.” Twilight didn't waste any moment, pulling from his pack a small pair of gloves and moved his pelt up around his head, before he was back out into the raging wind, no one quick enough to stop him. Silence hung over the group, before Legend gave a snort.

“I'm not putting those on...” he grumbled, glaring at the pair of pants that Wild was offering to him.

“You'd be stupid not to,” Wild retorted, giving the other a meaningful look as he sat a bit more comfortably on the cold stone. “The Elixir doesn't last forever. Nor does it protect you from frostbite or wind burns.” Legend was silent, still glaring at the offered pants.

“No.”

“Put the damn pants on, or a lot more than just your face is gonna be frozen over.”

“Make me.”

“I can arrange that,” Warriors said, depositing the youngest Hero into the arms of Hyrule, both squeaking in surprise, and helped to wrestle the foul-mouthed Hero up, out of his boots, and shoved into a pair of pants.

“You will both die a horrible horrible death.”

“Not the first time, doubt it will be the last. Plus, these are warmer than going pant-less.”

“Experience?”

“I'm not going to confirm or deny it.” Wild let him go after giving a quick adjustment of the belt, and let him put his boots on in peace. No one made any comment about anything that Legend hid under his tunic, and Wild went back to offering everyone something from his never-ending supply in his slate.

Twilight came back after a few more minutes, seeing Wild putting Wind into the large Snowquill coat, while Four was putting on a pair of thick pants that didn't even fit him, the legs bunching up, Legend in pants, and Hyrule was searching his bags for something or other.

“Well. We're going up the mountain...” Twilight stated, taking his pelt off his head and shaking the snow from his face quickly. “The tunnel is frozen over, so if we wanna warm up, it'd be better to go further up.”

“Why is that?”

“There's an old home that someone abandoned up there, and it's being used by a pair of Yeti's. I'm sure they would be able to help us until the storm passes.” Twilight glanced at everyone, seeing they were all in a reluctant agreement. Especially since the wind was starting to creep into their small cave.

“You know the mountain better than we do. Lead the way.” Time knew this wasn't his element, this wasn't his time period, so he knew that it would be pointless for him to lead the party. Twilight gave a nod before he looked to everyone.

“It's cold and you can be blinded here, but we need to stay together.” He looked at Wind and Four, biting his cheek in thought before he sighed.

“You guys are gonna hate it, but the snow is pretty deep, and I don't think either of you would do well trying to trudge through the deep snow.” Twilight looked to the others and frowned in thought. “I know you don't like it, but it may be faster for you two to be carried.” Four and Wind looked affronted, almost ready to argue, but Sky stepped in.

“I agree. It's not that we don't think you capable, but it would be safer for all of us.” Sky gave an apologetic look to the shorter Heroes, hoping to keep the peace for a bit longer. Wind frowned, crossing his arms, but he reluctantly nodded. Four did the same, not at all pleased by this turn of events. Wild moved down to pick up Four, and with some help got him covered by his cloak and the hood pulled up over his head, Four resting his chin on Wild's shoulder, but his face showed his great displeasure. Twilight knelt down and Wind got on, frowning himself. With some help, everyone was set and Twilight took a moment to collect himself.

“Alright. I'll lead, and everyone keep in line. Just don't stray away, don't listen to anything else out there. We may have enemies against us, but don't spread to far apart or you might get lost.” Getting nods from everyone, Twilight was the first to step out.

Immediately, they were buffeted by harsh, icy wind, nearly toppling Sky over, before he pulled his sail cloth closer to him.

“Goddess save me! It's cold!” Legend shouted, instantly pulling his hat over his ears as quickly as he could and then stuffed his exposed hands into his sleeves, attempting to try and prevent them from freezing.

“A thank you would be nice,” Wild managed to shout as he followed Twilight across the an icy field. No one heard Legend's grumble but the group moved as quickly as they could in knee-deep snow, Twilight at the head as he moved easily, even while holding onto Wind with no hands.

As they climbed, they could hear over the roar of the wind a howl. Twilight stopped, his head moving around quickly but he couldn't see in the whiteness of the blizzard.

“What was that?!” Warriors called out, squinting to try and see through it all. The wind stopped for a time, the snow no longer blinding them, and he saw exactly what it was. Popping up from the snow, white just like ice and eyes red like rubies.

“WOLFOS!” He exclaimed. Those without a person to carry drew weapons, a pack of 7 encircling the group with ease, moving quickly and darting down and up from the snow, shifting like it was the most natural thing in the world.

The group huddled together. Four was able to give Wild his bow and move himself to allow the other to begin firing arrows to the creatures. Wind held himself up to allow Twilight more free-range of his limbs. It was tense, being circled like prey. Wild fired the first shot, his aim true as it soared when the gale stopped and embedded into the eye of one of the Wolfos. It gave a howl of pain, dissipating into the snow and leaving the arrow behind. The other monsters began their assault, attempting to pounce upon the whole group. With flashes of swords and the flying of arrows, it was a scramble to try and keep footing in the snow and not hit any of their comrades.

“Are your enemies normally like this?” Warriors shouted out, taking his sword and stabbing upwards into the chest of the wolf-monster, wincing at the loud howl of pain in his ear.

“Less talk, more fighting!” Time shouted, more appearing from the snow to circle them, the growling being drowned out by the wind. Hyrule moved quickly, taking his magic sword to block the sneak attack that was attempted on Sky.

It felt hours later, but they soon were left in an open ice field, the raging blizzard slowing down to be a bit more manageable to maneuver in. They climbed up further, Twilight leading the party still as they continued to climb higher and higher up.

“How much further!?” Wild shouted, struggling for a moment with his footing as Legend reached out to try and steady him and Four.

“Just... Just a bit further!” Twilight called back, squinting through the snow as they finally came to a large overhang, a simple stone at the edge but Twilight passed by it, heading towards where in the mountain wall was a crawl space that lead further in, though it was obscured by the snow. Twilight did his best with his feet to kick away snow, showing that it was much larger than how it looked.

“This will take us further up the mountain, and get us out of the wind.” He knelt down and Wind got off his back, yelping as the snow dipped into his boots, but he was crawling through. Wild knelt down and let Four do the same, though they helped him with his current pants situation. One after another, they all crawled further in. Twilight was last, and it was a relief to be out of the harsh wind that still whistled by.

“Why is your mountain so cold?” Legend asked, huddling himself right next to Hyrule in an attempt to bring their body heat together.

“I don't know, and I don't question it. It's not as bad as our Champion's two snow mountains,” Twilight teased, shaking his head and scattering bits of snow and ice that clung to his face. Legend grumbled something or other as he blew hot air onto the interlocked digits between him and Hyrule. Warriors was rubbing his face to bring some feeling back in and fixing his hair, while Sky gave a loud sneeze, the sound reverberating in the cramped space. Time was flexing his fingers in an attempt to bring some feeling back, as Wild sat on the ground, panting heavily.

“Almost there. But let's... let's catch our breath.” Twilight moved over to a wall and slid down, trying to catch his own breath. Legend started to search in his bag, cursing everything under the sun, but it seemed he came up empty.

“Captain, did you give me back my Fire Rod?” He asked, his teeth clenched in frustration.

“Yes. A week ago. You even had it yesterday. Why?”

“I can't find it.” It was silent between everyone for a pregnant pause, and they all looked at one another

“Alright, you guys know the drill,” Time stated, kneeling down to look through his own equipment. It seemed whatever was in store for them, had once again decided to make their life a little easier.

“Aw man, I can't find my Hammer!” Wind exclaimed, glaring at his bag as he pulled out various items.

“I don't have my power gloves! Nor my Magic rod either,” Warriors frowned, arms crossed as he glared at his bag.

“My Ball and Chain is missing as well,” Twilight managed out, frowning at his own bags. “And I'm missing one of my Clawshots too.”

“Welp, both my Fire Rod and my Hammer are missing.” Legend paused and patted down his person, and pulled out his necklace once more and frowned. “Missing my Quake and Bombos medallion too!”

“My Magic rod is missing too, but I have my Candle... not much help though...” Hyrule mumbled as he pulled out the magical items, a nervous smile on his face.

“Yeah, I don't know if that will be helpful.”

“I'm missing both Clawshots... again.” Sky bemoaned with a heavy sigh. “And my Mogma Mitts too.”

“I'm not missing anything. Not that I had much...,” Time stated as he looked in his bag. Wild was silent as he looked through the slate, his frown deepening.

“Oh, my hammer is missing too,” Hyrule mumbled before he just sighed.

“I'm... not missing much,” Wild finally said, frowning a bit. “But I can't feel...” he stopped, taking his hand to his chest and frowning. He was silent for a long moment before shaking his head.

“Something just doesn't feel right,” he finally explained, opening up his inventory and he pulled out a bundle of wood and some flint.

“Let's try and warm up before heading further up. It would do us no good to continue in cold, wet clothes,” Time stated, peeling off his gauntlets as Wild got the fire going. They all huddled around it, working to warm up fingers and toes, attempting to use it to try some of their clothing from the frost that clung to it. It was silent as everyone tried not to shiver, the elixirs that Wild had given them starting to wear off as the chill started to permeate their bodies through clothes.

“So what should we expect going forward?” Warriors asked, adjusting his scarf to wrap better around and cover his face. Twilight could feel everyone turn their gaze to him. He frowned, closing his eyes as he held his gloves close to the fire.

“We go up a little bit here in this alcove, and then we start a slide down the mountain to the mansion,” he explained, seeing a few of them blink at that.

“Oh! Like Shield surfing?” Wild asked, perking up at the description.

“It's exactly like Shield Surfing, yes, but we don't need to use our shields.” The pout Wild gave had him chuckling as he set the gloves down close to the fire and warmed his fingers now. “There is a tree with huge ice-shaped leaves to use. They should fit one person easily.” No one said anything, thoughtful as they considered their options.

“How far down is it?” Time questioned, adjusting the circlet to rest a bit easier on his head.

“Uh...” Twilight struggled to figure out how far exactly they would go down. “I think... perhaps a few miles? Once you get going and have your balance right, it's pretty quick.” Twilight thought for a moment longer and then nodded, as if certain about his memory.

“Not everyone knows how to “shield surf” you know,” Legend grumbled, rubbing his hands frantically as Hyrule nodded, pulling his boots off to try and warm his thin socks as best as he could, wincing a tad as he pulled the slightly damp fabric away. Silence was the answer and Twilight just sighed as he leaned forward onto his knees.

“I wish I had an answer other than to walk down it... but the snow is even deeper going down the mountain, and it has some Ice Keese that like to cause trouble too. So... it's up to you guys.” Twilight watched as everyone mulled that thought over.

“Let's just try and get warmed up before going back out. Do we have more gloves, Champion?” Time asked, and Wild did nod before pulling out several pairs of gloves of varying thickness and sizes.

“Why do you have so much stuff?” Legend asked, picking a pair that were big enough for his hands.

“Says you, hoarder of magical items and weapons.” Warriors snarked as he pulled on a pair himself. “We should start calling you a Dragon with how much stuff you have at your place.”

Before a verbal argument could break out, Four stood up, wobbled for a second with the overly large pants, and attempted to go get a pair of gloves, only for him to trip and land right on top of Legend.

“Sorry...” he mumbled, frowning as he glared at the pants. “You don't have anything a bit... smaller?” Four questioned. He got a negative shake of the head from Wild as they helped untangle Four and Legend, and a pair of gloves were handed to him. Wind gave a loud and violent sneeze, looking miserable in the cold as a hat was put over his head and ears tucked in.

“I hate the cold...” Wind grumbled, pulling himself closer into the coat, finding warmth in the downy feathers that kept him warm.

“You're not the only one,” Sky mumbled, giving the other a sympathetic smile. It was silent as everyone began to conserve their energy to try and keep going after this.

“Let's hope that we can get there in one piece...” Hyrule whispered, pulling on his reserves of magic and conjured up a magical fire with is hands, now using it to try and dry the rest of his clothes.

“You and me both,” Twilight whispered to himself as he stared into the flames.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mountains are cold and Yeti's talk strangely

By the time the group of Heroes had warmed up enough from their last trek up Snowpeak, night had fallen, bathing the world in darkness as the storm continued outside. Twilight led everyone further up the tunnel, reaching the highest point, unable to see the land stretched out before them through the thick haze of the blizzard.

Just a bit further ahead, they could see the silhouette of a tree over a hill, however when they attempted to climb further, they were surrounded by pillars that slammed down from the sky, a dark magic radiating and creating a red-tinted barrier around the group, trapping them form going further, or back.

"Move!" Twilight shouted, and everyone scattered from the center as they glanced up, seeing a dark portal that swirled red open from the sky, dropping several dark figures onto the snowy earth.

"Shadow Beasts!" With sword drawn, Twilight braced himself. "Don't leave one standing alone! It'll revive it's friends!" The beasts began to rise, 10 against 9. It was difficult in the snow, but the lumbering beasts fared little better, even with long limbs and faces covered by grotesque mask, tendrils in the back of their head lashing out like angry tails.

Warriors couldn't help but feel they looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn't contemplate it as he lashed out against one, blocking the attacks from thick hands with claws, before he unleashed a flurry of strikes. It collapsed with a cry, and he turned quickly to help a struggling Wind with his own beast. He glanced over to see Four was being overwhelmed while still stuck in the overly-long pants, but the Hero of Legend was quick to dart in, his own beast struck down on the earth.  
  


Time grunted with effort as he blocked the attack, being nearly knocked over by the force of the hit. However, before he could strike, it stopped and reared back, giving an ear-piercing cry. His good eye looked around and saw that they had left him hanging with his only one, and now they were all back up.

"Leave only two for last!" Twilight called out, blocking his own beast before he shoved the blade quickly into the opening created by a staggering block.

"Aargh!" Four shouted as he was shoved back from his own strike, Warriors quickly coming in to do his best to stagger the beast and then take it out. Hyrule was stuck between two of them, and he rolled out of the way from both their strikes, turning to lash out with a spinning strike to cut both down, magic glowing around his hands.

Sky faced the last two, the other's having taken care of their own. He looked between both for a long moment, considering them in seconds, before he lunged backwards from their strikes, just in time for both Time and Twilight to pierce the beasts in the back.

The beasts fell to the ground, silence reigning in the wind as one by one they shattered into weird black particles, that then froze midair and shot towards the sky. Looking up, the group could see that the portal that had been there briefly was back, only instead of red, it was a teal color. The pillars that formed the barrier dissipated as well, leaving the group able to move.

The storm began to subside, leaving them in clear view of where exactly they were, even in the darkness of the night, with only the full moon lighting their way.

"What in all that is the light, was that?" Legend asked, sheathing his sword as he adjusted his pants, glaring at Twilight as if it was his fault for this whole mess. Twilight just sighed as he looked forward.

"Shadow Beasts.... but that was more than the last time I fought them." He didn't attempt to answer any more, moving through the thick snow towards that tree. Warriors shared a glance with Time, frowning along with the Old Man. He recognized them now, when his own adventure had the crossing of timelines. Perhaps they were like the things that his own temporary ally used all that time ago...

Moving ahead to catch up with Twilight, they were surprised to see when they crested the hill a large white beast with some weird head gear. It was already speaking with Twilight, holding in it's hand a large red fish.

"Uh uh uh uh uh! You look long time!" It laughed, loud and booming that threatened to shake snow from the mountains. Twilight didn't look very amused except from the slightest upturn of his lip.

"...That was joke. Yeti's joke too, uh," The Yeti commented, having seen the look that Twilight gave him. The group came up closer, seeing that there was no immediate threat to them.

"You look for something else, uh? Tell truth." Twilight looked to the group for a moment, before he saw Wind and Four struggling in the snow again.

"We're looking for a place to stay and wait for daylight to come. We got lost on our way looking for a Mirror." Time narrowed his eyes at that, wondering what the Pup was talking about, Wild coming up and standing beside his mentor to look up at the large creature curiously.

"...Uh. You look for mirror in such faraway place." It commented, thoughtful for a moment before he laughed once more. "Why not say so before?" The Yeti turned to look at everyone and gave a smile, though the tusks made it seem far from benign.

"But you make good climb, even for humans so small! And you lucky to meet me!" He turned and looked further down the path that wound down through sheer cliffs and dotted with trees.

"I find shiny mirror piece. Same mirror you look for, uh?" He asked, and Twilight shrugged, not sure if it would be or not. He pointed with his unoccupied hand towards the tiny hint of a rooftop.

"Uh! You come to house and see yourself!" He then held up his prized fish, the wind coming by and bringing in the scent that rolled off it, and it REEKED!

"I caught fish! I make you hot meal, at least... My house far away... We slide there, uh? Do like me! Come!" He didn't wait for any answer, taking his fist and hitting the tree. On one of the branches, a large leaf covered in ice fell, hitting the ground. The Yeti hopped onto the flat surface, balancing on one foot, and with his other foot pushed off. He slid down, jumping over a chasm with a happy laugh, and started to go down the hill.

"...Do we really have to do this?" Hyrule asked, frowning as he counted the leaves that were there. Not enough for all of them, unless some of them doubled up in a way.

"I don't need those!" Wild said, pulling his slate out and pulled forth a shield. It was flimsy at best, but it was big enough for him to stand on easily. "I could easily Shield surf down the mountain."

"That still won't help those of us who don't know how to do that," Warriors commented, his mind trying to come up with a possible solution for all of them.

"Some of you don't have to do that," Twilight stated as he fiddled with the pelt around his face again. "You guys can walk down it if you want. I can start cutting a path down myself if you'd like, to at least lead the way down safely." A few of them thought it over, and Time stepped in to help mediate.

"Those of you willing to do this... snow surfing, are more than able to, but I think we should keep in mind those of us that can't." Wind gave a sneeze at that moment, trying to bundle himself further into the downy coat that had been given to him, while Four managed to wrap Warriors scarf around himself and give him a bit more warmth.

"Alright. Who wants to?" Twilight asked, and Legend jabbed him in the side, making the taller warrior flinch.

"Uh... if you're done being blind, we can't walk over the chasm! I don't think I could even make a running jump over that, even with my boots," He grumbled, obviously still miffed about being put into pants at this rate.

"Don't you have something that could help us, you hoarder?" Warriors snipped, glaring at the other man. Legend glared back before he looked thoughtful, and pulled out his bag for a moment.

"I might have... HA!" He shouted and pulled out as silvery rod, adorned with a blue crystal that sparked in the moonlight. "I do have something!" He grinned and threateningly pointed it at Warriors.

"Why don't I try it on you first!" He grinned, and the Captain never moved as quickly as he did to use someone as a shield. Legend just moved and suddenly there was a bridge of ice that expanded over the chasm.

"Ah man... I guess I missed." Warriors glared at the other hero, but Time was there to prevent any real fights.

"Just... someone lead the way before we kill each other." Twilight gave a salute and he pulled out his bow, and fired an arrow at the icy leaf, dropping it down. He set it correctly on the ground, and he moved his pelt over his nose before he was now riding down the hill. Wild gave a whoop and did running start, before doing a flip and was riding down the hill.

"....Should we be afraid?" Four asked, blowing on his fingers through the gloves to try and keep some more feeling in them. Sky didn't respond as he dropped a leaf himself and gave a smile. They watched him slide down and follow the path. It was silent for a long moment, before Warriors heaved a sigh.

"I guess I'll make sure they don't kill themselves." The Captain took his own leaf and was following after, leaving Time with Four, Wind, Hyrule, and Legend. Time sighed before he looked to the others.

"I guess we're walking..." He grumbled before he knelt down and Four begrudgingly got onto his back.

"I can walk! I just can't feel my toes," Wind growled, giving a sneeze himself as he tried to shift around. Hyrule and Legend glanced at one another and then to Time. The older hero shook his head, and that was the answer they got.

"Not happening kid. Sorry," Legend stated, putting his rod away and he picked up the youngest hero, much to his embarrassment.

With everyone set, they headed down the mountain. The ice bridge Legend had made was slippery, Hyrule having fallen and slid the rest of the way across with a yelp, before he tipped over and rolled a bit down the hill. Wind snickered as he was carried by Legend, who also snickered, but they got across the chasm, just as their icy bridge was soon cracking, and broke into thousands of tiny, crystalline sparkles that descended into the air and the bottomless pit down below.

"I don't think we're heading back..." Four mumbled, and Time just sighed, before they began to move forward. Through the valley of cliffs, they trudged through the snow, Legend cursing everything out there with a visceral hate while Hyrule was doing his best to keep upright. The further they went down, even with the path forged by the group before, it was still difficult with the wind picking back up to try and knock them over.

The bridge they crossed was rickety, being swarmed by Ice Keese, with more bodies lying around the boards, beginning the process of rotting away into nothingness. But they kept going, seeing a hill ahead of them once more, and soon they looked down to see a cluster of trees, caked with ice and snow, some bent over with more snow atop to create what appeared to be platforms, more Keese flying around to try and attack them.

"I hate Keese..." Four grumbled, reaching for his sword to swat away at the annoying flying beasts from their heads.

"I can agree," Time commented, ducking down from a swoop attack from one of them as they continued through the trees. They passed down more of hte mountain, Legend losing his footing and taking both him and Wind down a ways, snow gathering up in the back of his tunic and Wind's coat before they stopped at a submerged tree.

"I. Hate. THIS. PLACE!" Legend shouted, his enraged voice echoing into the emptiness as Wind groaned, his head having smacked into the bit of trunk that Legend clung to, looking a tad dizzy from the injury. Time and Hyrule struggled to get down further, the snow slowing their attempt. With effort they got them upright, Wind blinking a few times but still a bit dazed.

"You okay?" Hyrule asked, shivering as the wind blew by and sent the chill through him.

"I'm fine. What about you, kid?" Legend asked. Wind just groaned, putting his face into the other's shoulder.

"Dizzy..." He mumbled, and just stayed there. Time glanced at Hyrule and Legend before he nodded. They need to move quickly.

The rest of the trip down was uneventful, though trying to keep balance on a curved surface was difficult for all of them. They did their best to keep Wind awake, not wanting him to fall asleep and possibly having a more serious problem arise if he did. What felt like hours later, they made it down the mountain, seeing that Wild was waiting outside the doors to a large mansion, though it was in ruins.

"You guys took your time," Wild stated, giving a cheeky grin. Time gave him his well practiced _l_ _ook_ and he clamped his mouth shut.

"They're waiting inside. It's warmer in the room with the other Yeti..." he explained, and lead the way through the foyer. There was a hole in the roof, letting in snow and ice that left the floor slick. Ahead of the entrance was another set of doors, and on either side were stairs leading up, one set destroyed right at the bottom, and the other half-way up.

Opening the middle doors, they were accosted with warmth from a crackling fire, where the other Heroes had been warming up, Twilight pacing back and forth to create a path free from dust.

"Oh thank the Goddesses," Sky murmured, getting up quickly and was handed Wind. Wind gave a groan when he was jostled, eyes bleary as he looked up, and gave Sky a lopsided smile as he just leaned into the other.

“I think he'll be fine. He smacked his head into a tree on the way down,” Hyrule managed, stumbling out of his soaked boots again with a wince, his hands coming up with magic to try and ease any pain the youngest might have. Four was being let down and unwrapping the scarf, though his face was still red from the cold, and his fingers were stiff, red and he was shaking them to try and get the numbness out.

"I'm glad you guys made it," Twilight said, his worry evident on his face. "When it was taking so long for you guys to get here I thought.... I was about to come up and after you guys myself." Twilight looked over at Four and examined his fingers, wincing before he moved the shorter hero closer to hte fire, next to a large woman who looked completely covered in a thick woolen blanket.

"More cute little humans?" She called, her voice soft and weak, turning her head in their direction. Twilight nodded, placing Four beside the fire and put some warm and dry gloves over his fingers.

"This is the last of us, Yeta. I thank you very much for letting us stay," Twilight greeted, Four grumbling about how he hated being babied but he was thankful for the warmth.

"I like to help, uh. Humans don't come here often." Yeta gave a cough and sniffle, as if she herself was seriously sick.

"Husband say there were many, but I did not think this many. You said you want to see mirror, uh?" She asked, and Twilight nodded. She gave a quiet hum, as if about ready to slip off into sleep, but she jerked herself awake once again.

"My husband found it, but it pretty thing." Wind was brought over to the fire as well, blissfully asleep after the magic Hyrule used to alleviate the minor concussion he sustained from the hit, before he himself moved to sit beside him.

"But since I got mirror, I get sick. And then bad monsters appear.... So many bad things happen since mirror..." She trailed off as Time began to remove his armor with a clang, before she looked to Twilight once more.

"So we lock bedroom on third floor where it hangs." Twilight nodded, and then looked thoughtful. What did he tell her last time he was here, and they talked about a mirror? Oh! Now he remembered.

"Could we get the key? I want to see if the mirror is just as pretty as you said it was, Yeta." The smaller Yeti hummed in thought, and gave nod. She turned her head to where there was a small roll of paper on the mantle of the fireplace.

"Wait.... I tell you where key is..." Twilight stepped around Four and Wind and grabbed the paper, unfurling it to see it was the blueprints of the mansion. He stepped closer to her, and she motioned to the first floor, and then to the east.

"Fever makes head blurry but..." She trailed off and Twilight took his finger and stopped on a room when she motioned for him. "I think it's in that room." Twilight nodded, rolling up the paper and sticking it in his pouch.

"But right now... cant even get up..." She hummed in that sleepy daze again, looking up at him with glass-like black eyes. "Would you bring it to me, uh? Start with door over there..." She stated, and turned to look behind her

Twilight nodded with a smile and pointed to Wild, and motioned for him to follow. Wild blinked, before he followed, turning back to see everyone else was working to warm back up. As they passed through the double doors, they were accosted with the scent of a simple soup in the air as they entered the kitchen. It was a bit bare and disarray, but Yeto was there over the main fire, a large pot over it that contained the soup.

"Uh! You!" He called out, obviously happy to see someone from the group before. Wild was looking around, mind already planning on some things to cook and make with the supplies already in here. Twilight moved himself closer to the box leading up to the top of the pot, closer to Yeto.

"Wife... look bad, uh? Not healthy since mirror..." He stopped to motion at the pot, where Twilight and Wild could see various things peaking up in the thick roux that bubbled. Several vegetables and there was the fish head from before bobbing around.

"So I make soup for her." Wild stepped closer, pulling a spoon from his slate to taste it while Yeto talked with Twilight, and seemed to contemplate the texture and taste it had.

"Fish from Zora Village are most nutritious!" Twilight nodded in agreement, his own memory of the soup coming back. "You tired, uh? You have some. It give you energy!" Twilight gently waved it off.

"Maybe in a bit, Yeto. I'm not hungry. But maybe you can teach my friend how to make it. And maybe he could help make it even better." Wild was already looking through his items, his mind running several miles an hour over food dishes. There were other places for him to light a fire and use the stone ovens and stove tops to make some more food and elixirs.

"You help?" Yeto asked, and Wild nodded, giving a thumbs up. Yeto laughed, clapping a bit and Twilight left the two to go back and see how the others were faring in the warmth of the other room. They had a long way to go still in surviving the cold, and what lurked in the ruins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So guess who was raring to go in writing the next chapter right away, but got distracted? If you guessed me, you guessed right.
> 
> so I literally wrote this chapter within the span of.... approximately 4 hours, but it wasn't all in one sitting. Heck, it was all written in the live-write channel of the LU discord server. I don't know how I did it, but I did.
> 
> I'll attempt to get the next chapter out sooner, but I have to replay the dungeon myself and that may take a little bit of time to do so, seeing as I had beaten the game again two months ago, and i forgot a LOT of crap. whoops.
> 
> Any comments on how to improve my writing, and as always, thank you for reading this far! I make no promises on when the next chapter will come out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ice, Injuries, and Soup
> 
> Warning: Mentioning the description of frostbite and frostnip, including treatment and vague outcomes to not getting treatment (viewer discretion is advised)

It was another hour later that Twilight was leading a few of their group out through the Ruins. Wild was sticking behind to help with cooking, while Hyrule decided to stick back with Four and Wind to help make sure they recovered well enough. That left himself, Time, Legend, Warriors, and Sky to go along. They passed through the kitchen, Wild juggling between several pots of food easily as Yeto talked away, they left through the adjoining door to the next room.

It was just as cold as the foyer, slick with ice, with two overly large metal crates in the ice patches, the third frozen to the floor, and a raised switch in the floor with another encased in a thick ice crystal in the middle. A puzzle to go forward.

"So.... what's the story behind this place?" Legend asked, looking over the room to see another large hole in the roof, the floor of the second floor having crumbled and rotted most of the way as well. There could be a way up, if they could reach the boxes and crates stacked against the wall, but they were too high up for even Time and Twilight to reach.

"I'm honestly not sure. It's obviously a mansion, but I think the original owner was... a knight? Or a commander? Rich enough to build his own home, but paranoid enough that he made it a fortress. Or even just a paranoid noble." Twilight went to the first of the large crates and using what leverage he could, slid it across the ice, starting to work out this puzzle.

"It's been abandoned for years at this point, so it's the perfect home for two Yeti's to live in and find peace." Time could see where to move the next block, and gave it a shove across the ice as well with a grunt and some extra 'Umph' from his power gloves.

"Huh... different. So... why do we have to traverse through this place?"

"I don't know. It's just like when I had to in my adventure," Twilight responded, sliding out of the way as Warriors seemed to have picked up the solution as well. Legend gave a shrug, and went to help, finally they slid the crate in place, the door that had been barred with the locking mechanism now open for them to explore.

Sky opened the door first, surprised by the wind that came and nearly took it from his hands, but they exited the room, coming back outside. While it wasn't as bad as earlier, the wind still picked up the powdery snow, sending it around in swirls and sheets to blind anyone foolish enough to explore this place.

The walls were tall, thick, but starting to crumble and deteriorate in places to show that it' has been around for some time. Ice blocked a narrow passage that they could have used to get through, the window barred to only allow a hand or well placed arrow to slide through. There was only a hole down at the floor that was barely big enough for a dog to dig through, snow visible as it trickled in from the other wall.

"Well... how are we gonna get outta here?" Warriors asked, looking around. The walls were too high for them to climb up, and he doubted that he could fit through that hole or break the bars on the window. Time glanced at Twilight, trying to see if he had some sort of solution. The farmhand gave a hum before he looked up, seeing that there was a section of the roof was open beside the wall, just enough space for them to help lift someone up to the other side.

"Hey, Old man," he commented, getting his attention as he pointed up. "Anyone got some Hookshots?" There wasn't anything necessary to say. Time and Legend pulled out their items, solid points of the tool latching into the stone, the chains retracting them upwards to then vault over the wall. Sky and Twilight helped lift up Warriors to climb up. Twilight got small sprint going up the wall, the Captain reaching out to help grab his hand as he scrambled up to find some purchase on the wall. They glanced down, and Sky did the same, though he nearly slipped but was caught by both the two heroes, and then pulled upwards. They landed on the other side in snow that rose nearly to their knees, making it difficult to maneuver.

The courtyard was covered in the snow, seeing that it was separated in two sections by thick walls of ice, leaving only a door on the same wall they just climbed their only way forward. There was another window, barred just like the first, that showed a door just beyond the wall, but there was a padlock holding doorknobs together, preventing it from opening. They had no where else to go but through that door, but nothing to open it with.

"Where to now?" Sky questioned, looking around to try and see what they could do aside from turning back. Twilight was quiet before he drew his blade. Just as from the snow, like melted water reforming, two White Wolfos appeared, growling and circling the group. The group of Links prepared for battle, leaving no one's back exposed. When the Wolfos leaped, they were no match for the sharp blades that pierced through their snow-made bodies, giving dying cries as black blood coated the weapons.

When the two went down, more appeared but they were cut down just as easily, though scrambling out of the way when another snuck up upon them. It was silent around them, save for the wind in their ears. Twilight looked around for a minute and he found a chest that had tumbled over onto the ground from a higher spot, half buried in the snow, and pulled a key. He gave a smile and pointed to the only door that they could go through.

Behind the other door, the floor was covered in ice save for just under the door, with two ice like shapes that spun around lazily in the ice, a single red eye looking around them as they moved, slowly moving around but their gaze was now focused on the group.

"Mini-Freezards. Annoying to deal with. Don't let them get in contact with you. They have enough power to freeze you." Twilight explained, seeing the ice under the other door as well. They would have to slid across and somehow make it there without getting hurt. Wonderful.

"Is there anything up ahead we should be wary about?" Sky asked, pulling out the Master sword as Warriors slid across the ice, hitting one and it bounced around rapidly, spinning itself in circles all the while in it's attempt to hit one of the heroes. The second attempt to hit it when it came by was a miss, making the Captain frown as he tried to turn and catch it again, another miss.

"I know there's more of these things, and some Chilfos up head. Just... just try not to get stabbed by their lance." Was all Twilight managed out as he stabbed his Ordonian blade into the other Mini-Freezard, shattering it to pieces as Legend caught the first with his own blade, making it shatter. Warriors gave a yelp, his feet not finding purchase with his slide and he landed on his front, hard. Time couldn't stop the snort that came through, shaking his head.

"I don't think you get along with the ice," Time managed, sliding across the ice himself before reaching down with his hand to help up the Captain. The other frowned but he took the help, only for both of them to wobble and land back down on their asses.

Legend said nothing as he slid on by, deciding to not help lest he himself fell on his ass, and he disliked the way the pants fit anyways, no need to cause any more discomfort to himself. Twilight shuffled over carefully, Sky wobbled as he slid, trying to find some thing to hold onto but he found himself slipping and landing on his behind as well.

"I don't think any of you are made for ice," Twilight stated with a chuckle, carefully helping the other two up onto their feet before showing them the exact shuffle to use for this big patch of ice. With the key, they undid the padlock, leading into the next room.

It too had the floor covered in ice, just a small storage room that held various items, like spears and battle axes stored in cases and racks, frozen over with the arctic chill that blew in from the broken windows, shields and tapestries nailed into the stone walls that were tattered and rusted. A suit of armor sat on a mannequin, encased in the same ice as the weapons while some crates sat in a corner, ready to crumble apart into dust. Around the ice covered floor were many more Mini-Freezards, lulling around aimlessly in the space

"I thought you said there were these, Chilfos?" Sky questioned curiously, Legend deciding to pull out his bow before Twilight stopped him.

"I said there were more of these things and Chilfos ahead,” he reitterated as he motioned to the spinning ice-block enemies.

"Hit them with an arrow, and all you do is make them bounce around. That would hit us, and that will just be a problem." A resounding groan from the other's was his answer, but they moved to rid them of the room full of enemies, the door unbarring itself with the defeat. Though Legend had lost his footing and was now trying to pick himself up off the ice.

"I really hate this..." He grumbled as Sky and Warriors helped him up, making it to the other room.

"Then you're gonna hate the end of this place...." Twilight murmured, his eyes looking away at the memory of what was to come. Time shot him a look, before he glanced around the room to see if there was anything of else. There, by the window, he swore he saw a dark shape move but it was gone, making him blink. Was it real? Or an illusion? Maybe the cold was starting to get to him...

They entered the next room, which looked to be a small gathering room of sorts. There were two grand chandeliers above, almost big enough to use as a platform of sorts, chairs and side tables off to the walls were splintered and rotting away, the floor intact thankfully with no ice, but snow was scattered in the edges of the room. The ceiling was crumbled above them, revealing the second floor and the part of the rafters for the room where the winds blew in, the chill never leaving their bodies wherever they went.

There was a door that lead into a small room, where they could see an ornate chest. Time took the moment to look around closer to the room, not seeing anything that could be deemed suspicious, but he watched as Warriors strode forward towards the only other door, now seemingly intent on opening the chest.

"Wait!" Twilight called out, stopping the other in his tracks just as his hand was about to reach for the doorknob. Suddenly, from the ceiling dropped two large ice pillars, which then formed into a vaguely humanoid shape. They stood up straight, their hands wielding a javelin made from pure, jagged ice. Two more dropped down close to where Sky was at the opposite wall, and another two at the sides. 6 total.

It was a flurry of battle, everyone trying to dodge the jabs that were made to pierce flesh and rolling away from cheap shots that were from a distance. Time gave a shout as he cut his own down, straight across the chest, taking with his claymore not only it's weapon, but it's life as the top half broke into a shower of crystals, the legs falling down and doing the same.

Sky was parrying his way around from the vicious stabs from it's weapons, managing to dodge one swipe that would have taken his head, finding and opening within seconds and stabbing into the alien-shaped head of it. It crumbled to the ground like nothing, leaving nothing in it's wake. Warriors struggled against his own, but when the lance shattered from blocking the strikes, that's when the Captain struck easily with a charged flurry of attacks, leaving only snowy dust in it's wake.

Legend danced with a grin around his enemy, waiting for that moment to strike and when it came, it was quick and efficient, his sword taking out the legs before shattering the head and lance in one fell swoop. Twilight was the last, having two himself to deal with.

Twilight kept his shield raised, watching both enemies for a moment before he struck. He braced his hand around the handle of his shield, and bashed it up into the 'face' of the front enemy, staggering it as it cracked, before he took a leap, flipping in the air and taking his sword to shatter the icy head right away. The second made to slam the ice lance down into him where he landed, but the Hero of Twilight rolled away, and then jumped behind the last Chilfos before slicing it up the middle.

The battle only lasted a minute, but it was over much quicker than expected, now the only sounds remaining was the wind that whistled outside, and their heavy breathing.

"Okay.... I can see what you mean by watch their lance," Sky stated, bent over slightly to try and catch his breath with a hand against the wall. Who knew that ice enemies could actually be so quick?

"I would have hated to get stabbed with it myself," Legend agreed, kicking ice shards away with a frown.

"You don't. Especially since they can make another lance as quickly as they breathe." Twilight dusted himself off for a moment, and then they entered the other room. Time looked at the back of Twilight's head, his gut sinking at the implication that he knew first hand the pain of an ice spear hitting him. Just what has the Pup been through? In the room, the tiny candelabra was flickering pitifully, as if barely managing to hold out some warmth for the Heroes, to give them a sense of peace and warmth.

Time bent down on one knee, undoing the chest only to frown, and pull out a pumpkin. He looked to Twilight, who blinked a few times before he groaned, bringing his palm to his face.

"Oh you're kidding me..." Legend grumbled, turning from the pumpkin to Twilight.

"No... no this is happening." Twilight sighed before he took the large gourd from Time.

"Yeto probably will want this. If Wild hasn't given him one himself." Twilight reached his unoccupied hand up and pinched his nose between his eyes.

"She got the wrong location?" Warriors questioned, eyebrow raised in his own disbelief.

"She did say the fever made her head blurry. Maybe she'll remember better." Twilight commented, but he knew that wouldn't be the case. Especially since they couldn't go further without her directions.

Sky opened the only other door that lead out of this room, the other's following behind. Legend gave a confused noise as he looked around, seeing crates, pots, and boxes surrounding them, then glanced up to see they made a staircase up to the second floor, which had a very familiar hole in the roof. Looking through the shelves, he could see [i]exactly[/i] where they were now.

"Oh... so we're back towards the kitchen," he commented, as Twilight held out the map for Warriors to grab.

"Yeah. We went in a bit of a circle," He explained, pointing to where they currently were, then showed where the door they entered in was and then drew the circle. "Let's drop this off to Yeto and see how Four and Wind are doing." He placed the large pumpkin up on top of a wooden crate, before he was climbing up and over to land on the other side, thankfully missing the patch of ice that covered a majority of the floor, pumpkin being dropped down to him.

They entered the warmth of the kitchen, Wild was stirring an Elixir or two at various pots, another fire was going that was taking his cloak to hang before it to try and dry it out. Behind Wild, Yeto looked at his own large stone pot as he took the large untensil and gave it a stir.

"Hmm... What flavor..." Yeto commented as Twilight drew close, not even looking in his direction. He scratched his chin for a moment, and then stopped to sniff the air.

"Uh... PUMPKIN!" He exclaimed, turning quickly to Twilight. "You have pumpkin, uh?" He asked, and when Twilight nodded, Yeto nearly shoved Twilight out of the way as he grabbed the pumpkin in his excitement. Yeto took it, and with no effort, crushed the gourd over the pot and dumped the whole thing in, taking the sticky hand and stirred it in to further effuse the soup with the ingredient.

"Thanks, uh! You taste if you want!" He grinned, eyes bright with happiness. Twilght gave a chuckle and decided to try it, Sky coming over to do the same now that he wasn't in danger of being swatted by the overly large hand. The warmth of the fire already seemed to help ease the cold that pained his joints, and Sky was eager to not have to deal with the cold. Skyloft was never like this....

Time moved over to Wild, seeing how he was coming along with his own cooking. The scarred hero looked up as he checked the consistency of one of the Elixirs, seeing the look the older man gave him.

"Any word on how our Sailor and Smithy are doing?" He asked, getting a shake of the cooks head. That could be good or bad.

Sky was pleasantly surprised by the taste of the soup, finding it tasted very similar to his own favorite pumpkin soup from the Lumpy Pumpkin, but there was that slight fish taste just hidden under it. Twilight grabbed one of his bottles and scooped some up, licking the corner of his mouth from the stain that coated his face..

Time and Legend were quick to exit the kitchen back into the den, Yeta's form obscuring their view of the other three as she sat propped up against the chairs and turned over chaise. Legend was quicker than Time, moving around to find Hyrule was dragging a blanket over towards the fire and also some bandages.

"How are you guys holding up?" Time asked, coming around to see Yeta was awake, although looking to still be in a bit of a fever daze.

"Head blurry, uh. But wake. Friends are sleep..." She said and Time looked to his companions. Wind and Four were bundled up under two blankets each, Four awake but his back to Yeta as his fingers were resting in two bowls of water that shimmered slightly, Wind was out cold as his feet were in a separate tub themselves of the same shimmering liquid.

Time winced at the way the digits looked, worrying his lip. Frostbite was nothing to shrug off, and was dangerous, especially for those not prepared for the dangers of snow. Hyrule came over and carefully draped the final blanket over Yeta, helping to cocoon her further.

"Our Sailor's shoes are completely soaked, and I don't think he should be wearing them anymore. Smith...." Hyrule paused and looked down at the other one. "His hands aren't as bad, but if we had waited any longer, it would be worse."

Legend moved over to lift Wind's feet out of the water, finding it was mildly warm but still fairly cool to his wrist. He winced at the way the toes were beginning to swell, fluid obviously building up from where the skin had been damaged by the wet cold they had been subjected to, the skin now red and showing signs of warming up. He then turned to lift Four's fingers, finding they weren't as bad but the pinky was doing the same as Wind's toes. This was very serious.

"How often have you changed the water?" Legend asked, setting Four's hand back in the water as Hyrule shuffled around a bit, carefully draping clothing over the backs of chairs to try and get them to dry.

"That's the second round of warm water. I asked our Champion if he had any potions to help infuse the water, so that should be helping to speed up the process. I'm just glad nothing else is as bad." Hyrule worried his lip as he looked down, his fingers coming up to trace around his ears that laid flat against his head in his worry.

"I would hate to think of the alternative if we didn't get this treated..." It was silent save for the crackling of the fireplace, and the steady breathing of the room's occupants. Time's heart felt like it would thunder out of his chest, knowing what could have happened if they were just that slower. He would have hated to do the alternative treatment should it have come to that. He took a steadying breath, reminding himself that they got in just in time, and with the help of potions and some gentle treatment, Wind and Four would keep all their digits intact.

"We should find some boots that would fit you boys that would work better for the adventures ahead," Time finally stated, arms crossed in his finality. Four glanced up at him and gave a snort.

"I'm not sure you're gonna find a Cobbler any time soon around this mountain," Four retorted, giving a small smile. "And even if I had my hands, I'm unable to figure out how to make boots."

"We'll keep our eyes open for anything. Maybe there's something in this place that could work for you." Legend stood up after tucking the blankets around Wind again, brushing his drying hair from his face. Hyrule could see that Legend really did care for the youngest hero, even if he hid it behind such a gruff attitude. Twilight and Warriors came in at this moment, Sky trailing behind with a steaming bowl of soup in hand. A look was shared between them, nothing needed to be said, as Twilight came around.

"Yeta?" He asked, getting her attention once more. 

"You find it, uh?" She asked, blinking dark eyes into wakefullness. Twilight shook his head to her question, pulling out the map once again.

"No. It was a pumpkin." That had the Yeti woman furrow her brow slightly.

"...What? Pumpkin? But why there?" She asked, looking around slowly in a daze, as if trying to get her head to clear up again.

"No good uh... Where I leave it?" She hummed a moment in thought, gazing into the fire for a moment before she blinked.

"Uh! Maybe THAT room..." She turned to Twilight who unfurled the map again, showing still the first floor. He did the same thing as before, waiting until she told him to stop on a room. This time it was further north, leading across the part of the courtyard they hadn't been through yet.

"Try there. Only place can think of now." Sky came over with the bowl of soup, and he pulled a chair over to her.

"Try the soup? Your husband says it should be good for you." Sky offered to help, but Yeta shook her head.

"Not hungry. Thank you human, uh," she offered a small smile, feeling upset that a human who came into their home was trying to help her. Sky frowned, hoping he could pull his patent 'baby face' that Legend teased him about, but she turned away, looking ready to nap once again.

"I'd like to try some," Four said, sitting up with the help of his elbows. Hyrule nearly tripped over a side table in his haste to get closer, and helped sit the smith upright, the blankets falling down to pool in his lap, showing that he was without any clothes, and showed off the various scars from his adventures in the glow of the fire.

"Let me bandage your hands first!" Hyrule squeaked out, checking them over again before he took a towel, gently wiping the water off of the digits, and then carefully began to wrap his fingers and hands, making them look like mittens.

"I'll be fine..." "No, no you won't." Hyrule gave Four a firm look, and it made the shortest hero jerk in surprise. "We have to keep them protected. It won't do any good trying to play tough. Especially if they become infected and...." Hyrule stopped himself, biting his lip to keep from disturbing the atmosphere any more then he could, before he set the other's hands down into his lap, and just gave a hard stare.

Time could see that Four wanted to argue, but he deflated and just let it happen, his face sour as he stared down at the wrapped hands. Sky came over, using a pillow to sit down as he crossed his legs.

"If it helps, we don't think any less of you."

"Maybe I think less of myself..."

No one said anything as they watched Sky just hold out the spoon of soup to Four, who begrudgingly ate it, his hands useless at this time. They understood that he was just in a bad mood The Army captain glanced at Time, who gave a solemn nod.

"I think I'll stay back for now, guys. Maybe I'll help our Traveler find something warmer for Sailor," Sky stated, looking back with a sheepish smile. "And maybe help keep him sane."

In a bratty gesture, Hyrule stuck out his tongue at Sky, but it was tinged with a smile as he moved over to Wind, now doing the same treatment to Wind's feet, though he tore bits of the gauze and rolled it, sticking between the toes to keep them separated and then gently wrapped them up as well. Wind gave a grumble in his sleep, brow furrowed, but he stayed blissfully asleep.

It was probably for the best that he sleep off any pain that was to come with feeling coming back after they were nearly frozen off.

"We'll manage without you, Chosen," Twilight said, giving a smile and a hand on his shoulder. Sky gave a shrug, just as Wild stuck his head out of the kitchen.

"Hey guys, need any Elixirs and potions? I have fresh batches finished, so if you need any, now would be a good time." Hyrule finished in tying up the gauze, tucking Wind's feet under the blankets again, and was moving quickly into the kitchen.

"More healing potion would be good idea for them," was all he hurriedly said as he darted around Wild, making the heavily scarred hero blink in stunned surprise. There was a silence, before Legend got up as well.

"You have any more of that Elixir you gave us before going up the mountain?" He asked, and Wild just motioned for the seasoned hero to follow in. Perfect, they could survive a bit more in this hellish landscape. For now, they would take a moment to warm up and dry off, knowing there was more to look forward to in this mansion.

Something was definitely off, but Time still couldn't place his finger on it. He knew this feeling. Familiar... but he couldn't put a name to it.

\-----------------------Bonus Snippet!-----------------------

Legend looked down at the two older Heroes as he smirked, sliding by with is arms crossed.

"Smooth," was all he said as he gave an elegant spin, the bottom of his tunic rising with the motion like he was some dancer, only for him to get a tad dizzy and hit the opposite wall, now landing on his ass to slide backwards towards the others.

"Aren't you glad you're wearing pants? I'd hate to feel anything ice cold in the dude region," Twilight snickered as he shuffled around, Legend glaring up at Twilight as he continued to slide backwards

"I still hate pants..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> over 4.5k words for this chapter alone. Holy buckets I think I have a problem O.O
> 
> Frostbite is a very very serious injury, and if had been left untreated.... let's just say some things would be very VERY bad.
> 
> I took some liberties with the healing process with potions and fairy tonic being added to the water to prevent infection and to also help with the healing process, but note that rewarming frostbitten parts of your body will cause the affected area to swell like a blister, and also you will have pain from the nerves reawakening. It is painful, and most doctors will give you medication to manage it.
> 
> If you have frostbite to the point of numbness and skin going white and waxy, seek immediate medical treatment! Never just brush it off like it's nothing.
> 
> As always, I appreciate any kind comments and advise on how I can do better with my writing, and I hope you enjoyed reading this!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wild's ingenuity, Twilight gets hurt, and everyone hates wrong directions.
> 
> TW: Depictions of injury (though not graphic) and blood

After another quite time to warm up once again, Twilight lead their group out of the door back to the courtyard, this time on the other side of the ice wall. Beside the walls of ice was an old canon, still looking to be in some decent working order, but also a door that lead to the central tower. It was guarded by a large ice sculpture with a vaguely draconian face and 9 red eyes that glinted like bloody rubies, while along the western wall was a gate, locked with another padlock, and also a lever and scoop system to deposit something to transfer from the walls.

Twilight stepped forward, but from the snow leapt another pack of Wolfos, which were easier to cut down in snow only up to their ankles instead of up to their knees. When they were no longer in danger of being attacked, Twilight allowed himself a moment to relax his guard. He turned at the sound of the door opening behind them, seeing Wild stepping forth from the warmth of the den as he pulled the hood up on his cloak, still wrapped in his doublet.

“I got tired of doing nothing in there. Chosen can keep an eye on the rest of our friends.” Twilight glanced to Time, seeing his reaction. The older warrior looked at Twilight and just shrugged, letting Twilight have the decision. Well, there was his response.

“Sounds good. Got a decent weapon though?” He teased, making the other frown but he pulled from his hip a two handed sword, edge chipped slightly but it was solid. Twilight gave a nod, deciding it would work for them.

“Where do we go next?” Legend asked, shifting around to try and figure where they needed to go. The way he looked around made Twilight pause as he found himself missing with his memory. Closing his eyes, he frowned as he thought. Where did they go next?

_“What? Can't use your brain, Wolfie? Why not use your brain, or better yet, maybe your senses?”_ He jerked at the snide comment in his memories, remembering who last said something like that. His senses....

“There's a key buried somewhere around here... It would lead to that door, which will get us past that,” Twilight pointed from the gate to the ice-sculpture, which creaked around to face them slightly, making Warriors jump and back up.

“That's a Freezard. Don't get close or it will...” Twilight trailed off as he watched Wild walk up to the canon for moment and then to his slate.

“What are you doing?”

“Why need a key? Is there anything on the other side of the gate?” Wild asked, looking up as his fingers danced around on his slate. A sinking feeling came to his gut at what Wild could have planned.

“A few cannonballs to use. But what are-” He was cut off as Wild had a round object materialize in his hand, looking like a bomb and he gave a grin.

“Why not just use bombs?” Twilight was silent before he threw up his hands.  
  
“Just don't kills us then!” He backed up, knowing exactly the damage that Wild and his inventive uses of those 'runes' of his could do. Twilight was beckoning everyone else to back up as well, as Wild moved the canon to face the Freezard, which gave a dark growl, before Wild put the bomb inside the opening, and then pulled out another sword from his inventory and stuck it, handle first, down the barrel of the canon.

“Oh you're shitting me,” Legend mumbled as he watched this, face growing in horror. Twilight could agree as Wild gave a thumbs up before he was running away, and then at a distance he tapped his slate again. The explosion rocked the canon and shot the sword into the open mouth of the Freezard, shattering it into those same smaller Mini versions from before.

The wind was the only sound in the silence that followed the explosion, the magical ice having cracked slightly from the explosive force. Twilight slowly turned to Wild and gave him a glare.

“That, could have gone _horribly wrong_. But I'm very glad it didn't.” He said nothing further before leading the way towards the door, using his blade to knock aside the Mini-Freezards. Wild tried to look for his blade but found it in splinters.

The next room was familiar to Twilight. A large circular room, the side barred off to create a long, narrow walkway. Through the bars they could see other similar canons, crates, cannonballs, and armor. Above them was a grated fence, as if best used to hold onto. In their 'hallway' were two sets of armor, standing back to back. At the opposite end, was a door.

Twilight paused, looking at the first suit of armor that stood before them, glaring at it to see if it would move, but it was motionless.

“Let's go,” he stepped around, his eyes watching the armor as they moved. He swore he could hear Warriors muttering something along the lines of: “it's just a suit of armor. What did it do to him?”

Just as Twilight reached for the handle of the door, a set of bars came down, preventing them from going forward.

“Why'd that happen?” Legend asked and Twilight had a split second moment of sheer cold fear freeze him, hearing a low 'swoosh' noise behind them, and then he reached over to pull Time and Warriors to the side, ramming into Wild and Legend at the same time the armor crashed behind them. Looking over Twilight saw a massive iron ball connected to a chain retreat back, scattering armor pieces around their enclosed space.

“What is _That!?_ ” Warriors gasped, turning to see what was behind them. The suit of armor from the entrance was moving, a figure actually wearing it. It said nothing, no facial features seen with the helmet on, as he adjusted it's grip, pulling it's arm up and began to slowly swing the ball around.

“Darkhammer.” Twilight said nothing else as he frantically searched his pockets. “Do NOT get hit by that thing!” Was all he managed out and he drew his singular Clawshot.

“Don't need to tell me twice!” Legend shouted, drawing his blade like the others. They had not a chance to talk further as their enemy threw the ball once again. They scattered as best as they could to avoid getting hit.

“The tail!” Twilight shouted, pointing at Wild. The other said nothing as he moved quicker, rolling around and stabbing at the opening in the back for it's tail. It gave a shout of pain, and before Wild could dodge, it backhanded him into the bars. A dull thud sounded as his head collided, Wild sliding down but his eyes were open still, showing he was awake. Warriors slid under Darkhammer's swipe to try and pull Wild out of there, but the doors were barred just as the other was.

Darkhammer turned to the other three again, swinging the ball above his head. Twilight watched Time reach for his Longshot, but he couldn't get his aim right, the way the ball was moving was right above his target zone. Twilight could see Legend was doing the same as Time, aiming his own Hookshot to the grate above.

The flow of time slowed around them as Twilight saw Darkhammer release the chain, sending the ball flying in the direction of Time. Split second decision, knowing that without Time, there would be nothing of his own world, that he wouldn't be able to go back to Malon. There would be no him.

He dropped his Clawshot as he moved to stand before Time. He could see the ball heading towards him, but he was deaf to the sounds of surprise as he felt the iron ball collide with his chest as pushed the other hero out of the way. The air left him as the heavy ball hit him, the padding of his under clothes and chain mail did little to soften the blow. Pain flared like a blazing sun through his whole torso.  
  
The pain was too much, too much! He couldn't breathe! Couldn't think! He was knocked back into the wall behind them, his world dark as his head cracked against the wall.

Time was stunned, absolutely stunned by the sheer _foolhardy_ act to save him! A rage, deep and dark bubbled up as he scrambled to his feet, Legend getting behind Darkhammer to stab his open weakness, but he rolled away.

With a roar so fierce and loud, Time charged forward, forgoing his Longshot and was parrying the attempts at knocking him back from his armored foe, attempting to keep him from swinging that chain at anyone again.

It wasn't enough of a distraction as Time was kicked away, but Warriors managed to take this chance and with a cry, shoved his own blade up into the small of Darkhammer's back, black blood spewing as the monster gave a loud cry, legs giving out. Time watched as Legend came over to shove his own blade in, so he scrambled to his feet, and with a grunt he kicked the helmet off. He didn't give the monstrous face a second glance and shoved his sword through it's neck, twisting it to ensure nothing would survive. A few seconds later, it gasped it's last breath, and dissipated into nothingness, staining the carpet beneath their feet black and their blades once more.

Time could feel that rage still in his heart, he wanted to tear that monster apart, but he remembered Twilight. He whipped around, and raced over to check on the other.

“You absolute _idiot_!” He hissed as he came to the other's form. Twilight's face was pale, eyes closed, but he could see just the barest rising and falling of his chest, though the way he breathed gurgled with fluid. It bubbled out of his lips, red blood trailing down his mouth and towards his ear. Time reached down to help elevate his head, panic starting to creep into his being when he felt the same warm sticky fluid on his fingers.

“Any help here would be great!” Time hissed as he turned, spotting Legend coming over. Legend gave a wince as he knelt down and helped pull the tunic up, checking the wound. They had no words at the dark bruise that was forming under his skin, how his chest was caved in, and Time felt bile rising in his throat at the way Twilight's ribs looked.

Wild was moving over quickly, ignoring the blood that dribbled down his face as he searched his slate, and pulled out a bottle with a fairy, the last one they had. Time nodded, and Wild ripped the cork out and held the bottle over Twilight, who's breathing came to so short that his lips were starting to turn blue.

The fairy fluttered around Twilight's still form for a moment, the magical dust beginning to dissipate over Twilight's body. Slowly, his breathing evened out, the wet gurgling leaving as Time placed his hand Twilight's chest, feeling his ribs expanding back out to the correct shape. The head wound also seemed to heal with the magic.

With color having returned to Twilight's face, his breathing easier, Time allowed himself a chance to relax. He helped to turn Twilight onto his side, just so he wouldn't possibly choke on any extra fluid in his lungs.. Time turned to look at Wild and frowned as he was sipping a potion, Legend was taking a piece of cloth and was pushing the hair behind Wild's head up and put it against his head.

Warriors was fiddling with the chain of the weapon that Darkhammer was using. Time could see that the Captain was curious about it, and it got his own curiosity as well.

It was interrupted as Twilight gave a groan, Time looking down at him to see his face pinch in pain, before his eyes opened. They were a little dazed, and looked around for a minute before landing solidly on Time.

“Hey, Old Man.” Time felt that anger rising again, and he resisted the urge to punch his descendant in his face.

“You could have died you idiot!” Legend shouted, the first to get his voice back as he left Wild's side and was stomping over, Wild giving a hiss as his hair got caught in his fingers for a moment. Time could see Twilight fumble mentally, trying to find the words to speak, but Legend seemed to be quicker.  
  


“I don't know about you, but I would think that stepping in front of someone who has thicker armor than you would NOT be the smartest decision!” Time nodded, knocking his knuckles on the armor.

“It would dent, surely, but I wouldn't have needed to use our last fairy to stay alive.” Twilight looked away, his hand coming up to his own chest and wincing at the way it still hurt. Fairies could only heal so much damage to keep one alive after all.

“I couldn't see if it was aiming for your chest... or your head.” Time could barely hear the whisper, but he said nothing else and pulled the other into a fierce hug, though loosened it when the other hissed.

“You ever do that again, I will drag you back from death just to beat you myself, Pup,” Time told him when he pulled back to look at him in the face. The way the younger man's ears flushed in his embarrassment was amusing, but there were other pressing matters.

“Okay, I'll be fine now. What about you guys?” Twilight questioned, using the wall behind him to stand himself up with a wince. He could see Legend's glare towards him.  
  
“Oh I'm fine. Wild got his head scrambled but that's not new-” “Hey!” “-But other than you pulling that stunt, we're all surprisingly unharmed.”

“Good.” Twilight looked behind them to see Warriors was attempting to pick up the iron ball, but struggled.

“Why was this thing left when it died?” The Captain questioned through his straining voice, finally giving up with an exhale and letting go.

“Well.... this was what I used to get through the rest of this place. So I kept it afterwards. Not much use outside of this place, honestly,” Twilight admitted as he managed to pick up the Ball and Chain, and with some work, he opened his magical pouch to put it inside, though he couldn't hide the wince with his tender injuries being strained.

“Should we go back and try and get you healed? Or do should we proceed?” Wild asked as he pulled the cloth away from his head, Twilight seeing he was obviously ignoring the matting of his hair at this point. With a sigh, Twilight gave himself a mental check over before he looked towards the door they needed to go through.

“We should proceed. We'll be heading back to Yeta anyways once we check that room,” he explained. With a wince, Twilight began to move towards the now unbarred door, everyone else following him.

It was easy now to break down the ice walls that kept them contained in the Mansion, but when opening the chest, they didn't get a key like Yeta had said there would be.

“ _Again??_ She led us to food again,” Legend asked in disbelief, obviously wondering how it is that twice they were lead to food far away in the mansion instead of the key. Twilight looked to the goat cheese in his hands, giving a sigh as he looked at Legend.

“She is still running that fever. Or Yeto moved it on her this time.” The collective groans of everyone resonated in the room, and they left to make their delivery and to try and get the directions from her once again.

In the Den, after having trekked through more snow, Yeta was once again dozing, but she was still conscious, as was Wind who gave a loud sneeze and startled the poor woman out of her daze. Twilight gave him a relieved smile as he handed the Cheese over to Wild. Wild gave him a look but went ahead, and Twilight came over to Yeta.

“You gave us wrong directions again!” Legend exclaimed before Twilight could open his mouth, and the rancher-turned-hero gave the other a glare.

“What happened, uh?” She asked, blinking in confusion at them.

“It wasn't a key, Yeta. It was Cheese this time.” Seeing Yeta reel her head back in surprise was proof that she clearly didn't remember anything in regards to the key's whereabouts.

“What?! Cheese...” Twilight gave a nod to her, Legend muttering something behind him but he paid no mind as he focused on Yeta.

“Uh... Did husband move it?” She gave a hum in thought before shaking her head.

“I try to remember. Maybe take Cheese to husband?” Twilight motioned to the door behind her.

“My friend is doing that already.” They were interrupted by a loud thud and the sound of a pan hitting the floor and rolling around.

“....Do we wanna find out?” Warriors asked, curious to what exactly was happening. Twilight just sighed and turned to Yeta.

“If you remember it, let me know. I don't think we'll be moving for a minute.” By this time, Wild came back out of the kitchen, giving a glare in Twilight's direction as he held up a bottle of the potion he had cooked up earlier. Ugh... Before he could make a smart comment though, he had the bottle shoved in his hands and Wild stepped over to the fire himself. With a sigh, he drank the potion before sitting down beside Wind, Warriors also coming over to give his 'little brother' some comfort.

“How are you feeling?” Twilight asked, as Wind gave a sniffle, face flushed red with a fever, as he shivered.

“Alive... barely awake... feet hurt.” Warriors gave a nod as he patted the other on the back.

“It will. Have you taken any more potions yet?” “No... they taste gross.” Twilight allowed the two their conversation, feeling his breathing ease a bit more as the potion worked it's own magic, and focused on some of the others.

Sky was chatting with Four, trying to offer the other a bit of comfort and something to uplift his spirits, as Hyrule was now unwrapping the bandages from his hands, inspecting them carefully. They certainly looked better now than they had an hour ago.

Carefully, Four flexed his hands, giving a slight wince with his pinky fingers, but they still held motion in them.

“Not too much pain?” Hyrule asked as he set the used bandages to the side, his look contemplative over the used gauze. Four shook his head as he frowned.

“Not much. I doubt I would be of use in the next few hours to hold a hammer and work the forge, but I think the rest of the Potions will help me wield a sword.” Four happened to glance over at Twilight and he gave the other a smile.

“I'm just glad you guys are alright.” Twilight could see the relief in Four's face, the way his eye color shifted ever so slightly but he blinked and it was gone.

“Did you guys find any extra clothes around this place?” Time asked as he came up behind Yeta, making the Yeti woman jump slightly.

“Oh! Yeah, we did,” Sky stated, giving a smile as he motioned to around the pile of furniture that Yeta was using to two pairs of boots.

“They're a little big, but they're the best we got for our Sailor over there, and the other clothes are being aired out a bit,” Sky explained with a smile.

“Can I vote that snow never exists again?” Wind asked, holding his hand up as his other was holding a handkerchief to his nose.

“For your time? It's gone,” Twilight stated and Wind just gave a thumbs up, before he blew his nose rather loudly, Warriors grimacing at the noise that just came from the youngest.

“Ah!” Yeta suddenly stated, getting everyone's attention.

“I think I remember, uh! We put key in nearby room, so no forgetting, uh.” Twilight stood up slowly as he came over, pulling out the map, and pointedly ignoring the murderous look Legend was giving the back of her head.

“How I forget? Embarrassing, uh...” He rolled out the map once more, and she motioned for the second floor with her eyes, and when he stopped, it was in a section that was completely ignored by any of them in this mansion.

“It there. It must be, uh! You look for me!” Twilight nodded and gave her a smile. But before he was going to go out through the last door, Time put his hand on his shoulder and forced Twilight into a chair.

“I don't know what you're thinking, but you're not going back out there to look for anything,” Time stated, voice firm as he gave Twilight the look of disappointment. Twilight flinched at the look, unable to get up from the chair with his hold on there.

“We all need to rest, and you need to finish healing.”

“What happened?” Hyrule asked, rolling up the bandages during the talk as he looked up at Twilight with wide eyes.

“Let's just say... he tried to be self-sacrificing.” Twilight glared at Legend's remark and turned to look up at Time.

“I'm fine. I feel a lot better after the potion.”

“No, you are not.”

“I'm _fine_ , Old Man. It's not like it's the first time that's happened to me.”

Silence filled the air as Time stared at him in shock.

“Not the first...” Legend whispered before he gave a loud groan. “That's it. You and the Champion are slated to be in a tie for: 'Worst Injuries' award. And I'm putting my money on you,” Legend jabbed a finger at Twilight at this point.

“What did he get hit with?” Wind asked, being handed a thicker shirt than his blue shirt by Sky and putting it on.

“A really really large ball... Made of Iron,” Wild stated simply, still staring into the fire in the Den. Silence was the answer as they all stared at Twilight. He frowned before looking away, uncomfortable with being the center of attention.

“So... how is your breathing?” Hyrule dared to ask, having finished rolling up the gauze and came to stand beside Twilight. He gave the other a look before he took in a deep inhale, and then let it out.

“No pain. I feel at full capacity. Just a little straining around here,” he motioned to the center of his chest, giving a wince as the last of the bruising was still there under his tunic and chain mail. He could see Hyrule chew his lip in thought, his hand hovering for a moment before his eyes asked a silent permission. He gave a nod.

Calloused fingers moved the chain mail and tunic out of the way, the undershirt following, he poked and prodded the skin, making the other squirm at the feeling, especially how his hand glowed slightly.

“Nothing seems to be too bad. Though I wouldn't suggest doing too much for the next... 20 minutes while the potion finishes going through you.” The cloth was put back down, making Twilight frown.

“Plenty of time to get me ready!” Wind stated with a grin, and then he paused, mouth opening and eyes squinting, before he brought his shirt up to his face quickly and gave a loud sneeze.

“....Enough time to also have the potion help him get over his sickness.” Twilight couldn't agree more with Hyrule on that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all don't realize how much of a struggle it was to get this chapter out. I was stuck for 3 days on one particular scene and I realized what I needed to do to go forward. And I also lied. this isn't the last chapter. the next one will be. or so help me, I'm going to pull my hair out because my brain doesn't like to go past 7 pages in my word document!
> 
> I was also experimenting a little bit with my writing style. It was difficult to stick with what I planned in writing how I wrote, but it's for the better that I keep a focused path, instead of bouncing around like I normally do.
> 
> As always, I thank everyone for reading this far! And please, let me know where I can do better with my writing style, but I also wanna know your favorite parts. It lets me know what I'm doing right and where I can get better at.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heartache and a Mournful Howl

By the time everyone was ready to through the western door, they had all warmed up, eaten some of the soup Yeto had made, and dressed appropriately for the cold outside the den. Warming Elixirs had been distributed as well to keep them from suffering too much. Twilight also had to put his foot down in using his ball and chain, knowing that no one else had the same amount of strength he had to wield is, power gloves aside.  
  
They had expected to come through a hallway to get outside, but to everyone but Twilight's surprise, it was a room with a spiraling ramp upwards, a door to the north with a lever and scoop mechanism beside it. Leading up the ramp, inside a large rusted cage, was another Freezard that would blow icy cold wind across the ramp, making it slick.  
  
"So... where do we go from here?" Legend asked, looking at Twilight as he seemed thoughtful.  
  
"Well... up top is a canon that we will have to use, but to use it, we have to one; get rid of these guys," he paused to motion to the ice monster before him and then through a small sliver, another cage further up. "and two; we go through that door," motioning to the door leading north, "and take one of the canon balls up to the canon."  
  
Silence was his response, leading him to inhale and then exhale.

"I can go take care of these things first, if someone wants to be my back up, while two of you could go and get a canon ball." Twilight saw Wind's face light up and he grinned.  
  
"I got that!" He was out the door before anyone could stop him. Warriors heaved a sigh, before he pulled his scarf a bit closer to his face and headed out the door as well.  
  
Twilight heaved his Ball and Chain out, wincing at the way his muscles strained but he felt no pain that he couldn't handle. With a grunt, Twilight began to lift the ball, swinging it around as he gained his momentum, finally having it above his head and with a shout, he let it sail forward, crashing into the magical ice that was blocking the ramp up. It shattered into crystals that dissipated in the air, leaving their only obstacle to be the Freezards and some ice.  
  
"What I wouldn't give to have my Fire Rod. It would make this much easier," Legend grumbled as Twilight pulled on the chain to bring back his weapon.  
  
"We gotta do with what he have," he heard Time state before he was moving as quickly as he could up the ramp, though when he had the small opening to try and aim at the Freezard, he knew he wouldn't have enough time to wind up and hit the monster, and even more so when he slipped on the ice and slid backwards, thankfully away from the line of fire.  
  
"...This isn't working out as planned..." Twilight mumbled as he glared at the icy stonework.  
  
"Would a pair of iron boots work?" Wind asked as he came up behind them, Warriors holding the large cannon ball before he set it down when the other's weren't moving.  
  
"No...it makes going up even slower." Twilight explained as he rolled his shoulder, trying to see if he could loosen it up a bit more before he tried to continue upwards.  
  
"Maybe I could try?" Wild offered, standing beside Twilight with a look on his face. "If I can lift overly large clubs and claymores, I think I can use the Ball and Chain." That was a dangerous thought process and Twilight wasn't certain how that would out.

"Nah. I don't think you can, Champion," Legend stated, making them turn to him before Twilight could respond.  
  
"No offense to your skills as a warrior, but if our Rancher here; who can lift large rocks the size of his head, is struggling, I don't think you'd fair much better." Legend pulled from his own magical bag a pair of golden gloves, giving a grin.  
  
"But I've got these, so it should be a peace of cake.” Twilight wasn't certain about the feeling in his gut, but he also knew that he wouldn't do much else with how he felt. And it pissed him off.  
  
"Just be careful." Legend said nothing else, giving a smirk, and with ease he lifted the iron ball.  
  
"Do you think this is a good idea?" Sky asked from beside Time, and Twilight heaved a sigh.  
  
"I don't know... but they are faster moving this time, than last time I was here."

The group watched as Legend was quicker in swinging the Ball and Chain and he timed it perfectly to smack the Freezard in the face. It wasn't enough to shatter it, but it did form a large crack in it's face that spider-webbed it's way through it's body. But just as it opened it's maw to spew out more of the magical ice, Legend was releasing it once again, and it shattered the monster.  
  
"That was easy," Legend remarked and Twilight gave a frown up at him.  
  
"Just go on and kill the other one then!" He snapped, giving the other hero a dark look.  
  
"Sheesh. Sorry I'm stealing your show," Legend sassed before he was moving forward. Twilight glared at his retreating form, and just turned around to grab the cannonball, following up the ramp.  
  
"Whoa! Twi you don't have to-" Wind was cut off by the look he gave the youngest.  
  
"I'm fine. This doesn't weigh as much as it looks." Twilight said nothing else as he continued upwards, missing the looks the others shared behind his back. The sound of ice shattering was the sound that greeted him as he came up the ramp, seeing that Legend has finished off the second Freezard.  
  
"Now just destroy the ice up there," Twilight motioned forward, seeing an alcove that was blocked by the same thick magical ice from before. He heard a few yelps down below as someone slipped on an icy patch, but paid no mind as he set the ball down to the side.  
  
"Sure thing." Legend thought nothing of it as he swung the chain around his head, and then released it to break through the thick ice. A moment of calm was there, before there was a group of Ice Keese that came out of the alcove, giving shrieks of anger at the one that disturbed their nest.  
  
"Shit!" Legend exclaimed, dropping the ball to let it roll down the ramp behind him as he drew his sword, Twilight doing the same.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me there were Keese?!" Legend shouted as he swung his blade to catch 4 at once.  
  
"I forgot!"

The two fought for a moment against the horde of Keese, dodging their swoops and icy bites, before Wild and Hyrule were beside them, batting at the little monsters until there were none remaining. Four and Wind were holding onto each other to help balance as Warriors was holding onto the rusted bars of the cage to get up, as Sky made his way up only stop at the top to catch his breath, Time right behind him.  
  
"Did you really forget?" Legend asked, turning to glare up at the other Hero. Twilight narrowed his eyes at him.  
  
"You think I'm trying to get us hurt on purpose?"  
  
"I don't know. Maybe you just have a bone to pick with me." Legend responded. However, before anything else could be said, Time stepped in.  
  
"We can't all remember what happened in our adventures. Some times the smaller things slip from our minds. Let's be thankful there wasn't anything else to worry about that required everyone's help." Twilight bit his cheek to keep from retorting, and he just silently lifted the cannon ball to take it to said canon, now uncovered from behind the icy wall.  
  
He said nothing as he inserted the iron weight, but was surprised when Sky and Wild came up to help rotate it to point towards the middle of the room, no longer pointing outside into the snow.  
  
"Do we just stick a bomb in it and let it go?" Wild asked, pulling his slate out to do just that, but Twilight stopped him.  
  
"For one, your bombs are a bit... much," he began, making Wild pout. "And for two, where it's aimed at," he pointed to the large metal crates that laid to the east, blocking another alcove of sorts.  
  
"It would just smack into those and bounce back. We gotta move those things first." Wild frowned but he gave a sigh and put away his slate. Twilight turned to Legend and held out his hand.  
  
"I'd like my weapon back, please." Legend looked around him for a moment before finally glancing back down the ramp, seeing the chain towards the bottom.  
  
"....Oops."

There was a moment for everyone in the silence, knowing someone was gonna have to go down and get it or else they could either not continue forward in this reliving of that past, or Twilight was going to throttle someone.  
  
Preferably Legend.  
  
"I've got it," Time offered, a sigh leaving him with his words as he trekked back down the ramp. Twilight pulled out the blueprints to the house one more, and he scanned the path they had to take.  
  
To the east and west there were doors, the one of the doors was crumbled with the wall, revealing part of the lavish house that was protected by the bulwark of stone, and the other door was set in the stone itself.  
  
Wind went to peek at the area of the house that was now exposed, but he turned his head back around and frowned.  
  
"It's locked back there."  
  
"So that means we have to go through there." Hyrule stated, scratching his face in though. Four was peeking over Twilight's arm to look at the map as the rancher-turned-hero frowned.  
  
"It's a single room though. I don't see a door that leads out from that room."  
  
"That's where the key is... and also above this room," Twilight explained as he moved to the first floor, showing a room they hadn't been in, having skipped it with Wild's help.  
  
"I will admit, without my own gauntlets this is difficult to carry," Time stated as he made it up the ramp, holding the heavy weight in his hands, golden gauntlets gleaming in the light that barely shown through the small windows.  
  
"It's no point for everyone going inside there to get the key." Sky pointed out, turning to look at them all curiously.  
  
Twilight bit his lip, and was about to state that he would go before Wind was jumping up and down.  
  
"I got this! I've been itching to go and do something since I woke up!" He exclaimed, his whole body vibrating with energy as his new boots tapped on the stonework with his movements.  
  
"I'd go with him too. I've been wanting to do something instead of nothing." Four stated, giving a smirk himself. They were both going stir crazy.

Twilight tried to recall what he did exactly in that other room, and bit his lip. Did he really want to let them go in there, after they had just recovered from injury at that? He glanced at Four's hands, seeing they were in some warm hide gloves, fur peeking out from the inside cuff, bundled up as best as he could with some of the extra clothes that had been found. Wind was in the same situation, but both were still able to be free of movement.  
  
"I think there's maybe... A Chilfos and a few Keese in there," he paused, rubbing his forehead to remember.  
  
"What's a Chilfos?" Wind asked, stopping his bouncing as he looked to the others. Warriors and Sky's expression showed exasperation but nothing was overtly worrying them.  
  
"Ice monsters, that make a large spear of ice to either smack you up close, or throw it to stab you while at a distance." Legend explained, having taken the words right out of Twilight's mouth.  
  
"...Yes. That's a fairly accurate statement." Twilight conceded as he put his map away.  
  
"Just be careful you two," Time stated, arms crossed as he gave them a stern look. Four gave a roll of his eyes, frowning.  
  
"I'm not that young, old man," he offered, a bit of blue coloring his eyes but the color faded away quickly, almost as if Twilight was imagining it.  
  
"Yeah same! I've done tons of things too, ya know!" Wind pouted, but he had a determined look to his face.  
  
"I'm not saying you aren't capable, I'm just telling you two to be careful." Wind didn't wait for any other answers as he raced off to the door, opening it and motioned for Four to follow him. When both were through the double doors, silence claimed them once again.  
  
"Should someone go and keep and eye on Wind?" Wild asked, frowning slightly as he checked the timer they had.  
  
"No. Unless they scream for help." Warriors commented as he turned to Twilight.  
  
"So I've been meaning to ask..."

Wind and Four were unaware of the conversation happening outside doors. The two of them glanced around the room, finding that it was a crumbling balcony that looked down upon the floor below. Though there wasn't much of a first floor to begin with.  
  
Before they could really look further, they sensed the room get colder and they turned. In the corner, just under the window where snow had started to pile in, the shape of a Chilfos appeared. He wasted no time, raising it's spear up and the two dived apart to keep from getting skewered.  
  
"It's huge!" Four exclaimed, eyes wide with a red tint in them.  
  
"I've fought bigger," Wind said, a grin on his face as he pulled the Phantom Sword from it's sheath and raised his shield. The Chilfos took the moment to form another spear of ice, but Wind was quicker as he dashed forward, attempting to strike swiftly and catch it off guard.  
  
Four was right behind him, but both of their attacks kept chipping at it's spear that it deftly blocked with. Before both of them could prepare another volley, they were both knocked back by it's spear. The shortest of the two skidded fairly far, hitting a post that served as an anchor to the railing, and Wind hit the detailed iron that made the barrier.  
  
"Fuckin' cunt! Now you've pissed me off!" Wind shouted, his face fuming as he got up quickly. Four scrambled to do the same, nearly losing grip on his sword, before they both raised their shields to block the spear aiming for them.  
  
Four saw the chance to strike when it had no weapon, and he sped up to it as quickly as he could, the blade of the Four Sword gleaming iridescent in the light, as he aimed for the joint in a leg. It made no sound as the leg gave out, but Four paid no mind as he took the moment it was down to try and stab at it's head.  
  
It blocked with one arm, though it was oblivious to the fact of Wind coming up and taking a big slice at the icy monster. It cracked. One more hit!

Four parried the arm away with a shout, and just as Wind pulled his sword away, he struck true. The head of the monster shattered in a shower of icy particles, and then the rest followed afterwards. The two of them stood there panting before slowly straightening out and glancing around.  
  
In the rafters were a few Keese that hung there, eyes watching curiously but didn't move to attack. Other than that, the most dangerous thing in the room now was the lack of a first floor, which had the floor rotted down to only support beams where the floor would have been, into the darkness that was possibly a cave system.  
  
"So... how do we get over there?" Four questioned, seeing the large hanging platform that was the only way across the chasm, a small array of barrels and chests on the other side.  
  
"Uh..." Wind trailed off as he looked around, seeing that one of the rafters was just low enough and still solid to use. His eyes lit up and he nearly dropped his sword in his excitement to search his bags.  
  
"I think... yes! I have it!" He shouted and pulled out a long length of rope, with one end having a metal claw-like grip.  
  
"We can swing across with my Grappling Hook! I don't think either of us have anything to make that move," he started, pointing to the chandelier platform that was swaying minutely in the room. "So this is what I've got!"  
  
Four was thoughtful as he took a step back and looked at the room as a whole. He could see it was a solid plan, but they also had to take into account that if they fell, it was a long, long drop that could lead into trouble.  
  
 _"We should remove the threat of the Keese first."_ He heard Vio comment in his head.  
  
 _"Yeah. I'd hate to fall that far down. Or even hit one of those support beams going down."_ Red whimpered.  
  
 _"Maybe only he should cross with his Grappling Hook? Could we make it across with our boots?"_ Green asked, Four scratching his head in thought.

"How about... I take care of the Keese and you make it across," Four stated, finally having come to an agreement in his mind, though he could hear Blue grumbling something fierce. The look Wind gave him was ignored as he pulled out his bow.  
  
He nocked it back, bracing his back as he pulled up to his ear, aiming upwards to the closest Keese. Before it had a chance to screech in surprise and get the other's attention, Four let the arrow fly by his face and over his thumb, thankfully the gloves preventing the fletching from slicing open his hand in the process.  
  
His aim was true, the bat being pierced by the arrowhead and giving a pitiful noise as it disintegrated in a puff of smoke, arrow gone with it. But Four wasted no time in the small victory, nocking another arrow and aimed quickly at another one.  
  
Wind had joined him, pulling out his own bow and aimed at one that was a bit further away, soon catching up to Four. Finally, everything that wasn't the two of them was dead, leaving only the howling wind outside.  
  
"Alright. It should be safe for you to cross now." Four stated. Wind gave a grin and he held the length of rope in one hand, the other twirling the grip a few times as he aimed, tongue sticking out in concentration.  
  
He let it lose, and both of them watched as it spun around the beam at least three times, before the claw latched itself into the wood. With a whoop of delight, he took a running start and then he was swinging across.  
  
As his feet hovered over the floor on the other side, he slackened the rope, letting the claw loosen itself as he landed in a roll.  
  
"Told ya!"

Four gave a smile at the other's enthusiasm, as he tried to calculate the distance between the balcony he was on, and to the platform across the way. Would it even be worth it to go across? Would there really be anything of use on that side?  
  
"Found the key!" Wind shouted, holding up the object with a grin. "And look! This one had some pretty nice looking crystal. These could sell for a couple hundred Ruppees!"  
  
That's what he would have to do. Stop Wind from being too much like a pirate and looting everything from this place. With a long sigh, Four wiggled his toes before he backed up. If he took a leap while running with his boots, then he could at least make the leap.  
  
 _"Just be careful..."_ Vio whispered, and he said nothing else other than trying to reassure that part of him, and with a burst of his magical reserves, he activated his boots. He made it across the gap to the chandelier, and he kept the momentum up and made the second jump, landing in a heap when the platform shifted with his landing.  
  
"Ouch.. that looked like it hurt," Wind stated, looking down at the other hero that laid sprawled on the floor. Four just stuck out his tongue at him before picking himself up.  
  
"Come on, only useful things, not things to sell." Four stated, taking the crystal glass from the other. Though he could admit, it was very well made.  
  
"Aw... ruin my fun..." Wind pouted, but he dutifully put it away into the small chest, though he thought he was sly and nicked a few of the smaller pieces to put into his bag for later use. Four said nothing as he looked through a few of the other storage containers. There were only a few other items of use, but nothing that wouldn't fit in their bags. With the key in hand, Four nudged the other.  
  
"Alright. Let's get back. I don't want them to come barging in asking what is taking us so long." Wind's face showed his agreement, knowing that it would just be a pain to deal with their bitching.

Wind was swinging across the beam once more, though the ominous cracking noise made Four wince but Wind had made it across safely. Good. Four glanced up at the rafters once again, seeing that the beam that Wind had been using was also where part of the joints for the Chandelier was using to support.  
  
 _"I knew we shouldn't have done this!"_ Red exclaimed in his head, the fear racing through his heart and making it start a staccato rhythm that thundered in his chest. He had no choice but to race across.  
  
"Come on!" Wind shouted over to him. Four sent a silent prayer up to Hylia and the Three, before he backed up as far back as he could. With another burst of magic, he was jumping across the chasm. He landed on the platform once more, though it gave a loud crack.  
  
Four wasted no time in using the momentum once more, though when he jumped across the sound of the rafter finally giving out deafened him as he had the split-second realization that he wouldn't make it.  
  
He gave a shout of fear as his hand flailed out and he found the edge of the balcony, the remaining section of the roof now coming down, the cacophony sound of metal breaking and smashing down below more deafening as he tried to get his other hand up. He couldn't reach it, and he could feel his gloved fingers starting to slip.  
  
He was going to fall!

"Hold on!" Wind shouted as he raced over, managing to grab four's arm with both his hands, bracing his feet against one of the railing posts. Four grunted as he got his other hand up to grab onto Wind's forearm, but he knew the younger one couldn't lift him. Especially since he wasn't wearing those Power Bracelets he had before.  
  
"Just... just a little bit more!" Wind grunted out, his face turning red in exertion and sweat starting to bead on his hairline.  
  
Four had a moment, a fleeting thought, that he should just let go, to not bring down Wind in the same mess he's in. It was less a fleeting thought and more of an idea. He looked away from Wind back down, seeing the twisted bits of metal from the chandelier tipping over to fall into the cave system. If he dropped, he would miss one of the beams down below, or he'd catch it with a leg and possibly break it.  
  
"Hang on you two!" A voice shouted behind Wind and Four glanced up to see Hyrule racing over, face set in a worried determination as he came by and grabbed onto Four as well. With a grunt, he used the hand still holding onto the floor and with two other's, he was pulled back up.  
  
 _"We aren't doing that again!"_ Red exclaimed and Four could only give a mental nod in agreement at that. Just as he was trying to catch his breath, heart still thundering in fear, the distant sound of crashing came below them. Four slowly lifted his head up and caught the eyes of his other companions.  
  
"That was... a 5 second delay...." he managed out, disbelief coloring his words as he dared to look over the edge. It was too dark to see below, and he swallowed nervously. He wouldn't have survived the fall, and neither would have Wind.

"Are you two alright?" Hyrule asked, standing up and trying to see if anything was wrong.  
  
"Other than my heart trying to escape my chest from that fear? No, no I'm perfectly fine!" Four gasped out, his eyes looking up at Hyrule in disbelief before he turned to Wind.  
  
"I think... you should keep your sticky fingers a bit more in control. _Please._ " He managed out as he sat back and did his best to calm his heart rate.  
  
"Yeah... sorry..." Wind mumbled but he stood up himself and took the moment to collect himself.  
  
"Let's go back to reassure everyone you're fine." Hyrule stated, offering a hand up to Four. The shortest hero gladly took it, and they all left the room, though Four was still a bit shaken over his near-death experience.  
  
When they were back with the group, the key was handed over and they all proceeded forward, though many in the group seemed very leery as they continued.  
  
Twilight could feel the heavy weight that settled on his shoulders, having had to explain exactly what this Mirror they were looking for was, and why he had to. Though the exact details weren't given, he knew he couldn't explain everything.  
  
Not without explaining _her_ and what she meant to him. Not without explaining the things that have happened in his adventure that would raise too many questions that would dig too deep.  
  
When they crossed the foyer and entered the western room, they were greeted by another room exposed to the icy elements, ice coating the floor and Mini-Freezards darting around to try and stop them.  
  
Though just as they slid towards the only open door, the other locked, Twilight glanced at himself in the reflective ice at his feet. What he saw made his heart clench in his chest and his whole body freeze.  
  
There, hanging by his reflections shoulder was the form of someone very familiar, and someone dear. But it wasn't her, not with how transparent she was. But also, his own reflection wasn't right. It was darker, and seemed to be more... beastly than what he was.

"You coming, Twi?" Sky called out, and it drew his attention away from his reflection. He blinked a few times and then glanced back down, seeing that nothing was amiss. As he stepped forward, he swore he heard the sound of a familiar giggle, his ear twitching at the sound. But no one else seemed to notice or react to it. He has to have been awake for too long if he's seeing and hearing things.  
  
The maze that was the fortified mansion kept them on their toes, but they had finally made it to the room that was supposed to be where the key was.  
  
The Chapel they were in was eerily quiet, the pews in the middle covered in frost from the hole exposing the room to the elements once more.  
  
"So... that's where the key is supposed to be?" Legend asked, pointing to the back where the door was barred, seeing through the slotted windows the sight of a large chest.  
  
"Yes. But don't go towards it yet." Twilight explained as he slowly pointed up. Stalactite of ice hung from the rafters, and he made a motion of holding a spear and jabbing it. Chilfos would descent upon them if they stepped further into the room. Wind gave a loud groan, hating that they would have to deal with those things again.

Twilight counted how many of them were above, and found at least 6, though he wasn't sure if one was just overly large or two close together. Some quick sign and they were all spreading out, slowly, before Twilight was the first to go towards the door. However, with the insight he leapt backwards, just as one Chilfos made to spear him as it came down.  
  
He raised his shield up to block the first strike, the sounds of everyone else fighting being drowned out as he tried to maneuver around the monster and the pews. It was difficult to do so, especially with the boxed in quarters.  
  
Twilight struck the icy weapon his held, before he pulled out his Ball and Chain. With a roar, he swung it around, the tightness in his chest a vague feeling as he struck out, crushing his enemy into nothing, but also splintering wood in the process. He kept up his momentum, managing to destroy more of the pews and also hitting the one that was corner Wind.  
  
"Get back!" He exclaimed, seeing 3 Chilfos in a row and he let the iron ball loose, Wild and Sky managing to get out to the line of fire.  
  
They had more room to go around, but so did their enemies. Twilight gasped in pain as he felt his chest ache, dropping the iron weight to the ground as he held his chest. He was left open to attack.  
  
He felt shattered ice hit the back of his head, going down his tunic to melt against his skin, and he turned to see Warriors was there, having shattered the one that attempted to sneak up on him.  
  
"You okay?" Warriors questioned, but he couldn't wait for a response as he heard Four shout and was quicker to head over to help the smithy.  
  
Twilight didn't respond back, and his hand shook. Why? Why was he so weak? Why couldn't he do this anymore? He pushed himself up onto his feet, grabbing his sword again, but found everything else was taken care of.

"Is anyone hurt?" He asked, but seeing that no one looked seriously injured or anything at all, Twilight took it as a sign that they were all fine. Just as he was about to turn back and go get the key, Warriors stood before him, stopping his advance.  
  
"Asking if everyone else is fine, but not taking care of yourself," the captain said, eyes narrows as he crossed his arms at him. "What happened back there? You left yourself open to attack, and that isn't normal."  
  
Twilight felt the metaphorical hackles bristle at the accusatory tone the other warrior gave him, he he grit his teeth.  
  
"I just ran out of steam. I'll be fine." He didn't listen to anything else said and went to the door, now unbarred. Opening the lid, he found the beautifully carved key, the shape of a heart as the handle.  
  
Stepping out, saw everyone was getting another dose of the Elixir from Wild, and Twilight thankfully took it. It slid down his throat, warming him and easing the ache in his chest a tad. Though when they stepped outside, the sight of Yeta standing there, her face warm and happy to see them all.  
  
"Oh! You safe, uh!" She chirped, her warm eyes delighted to see them all.  
  
"I drink husband's soup, feel much better uh. So I come find you. You found key?" Twilight held it up, and she smiled again.  
  
"Good! Good! Bedroom right above us. I take you there, uh!" She didn't wait, leading them up the ramp that was to their left.  
  
"So... she's the one..." Time started to say but trailed off. Twilight gave a nod, looking up at his mentor for a moment. "I don't like doing this, but if what we had to do back for Sailor is the same as now... then we have to."  
  
He had hated to fight her back in his first adventure, but knowing that the same events were playing out before them made his stomach twist in anxiety.  
  
"Any advice?" Sky questioned as he tugged his Sailcloth off, folding it and storing it away to keep from having it be ripped.  
  
"Watch your footing. And if you can't fight, get to a corner."

"Anything else? Like how to fight her?" Legend whispered, not sure if she could hear from that far up.  
  
"The Ball and Chain. Or if you happen to have another heavy hitting object. But be careful, she has a frost that will catch you if you're too close. And then after a time, we gotta avoid being crushed when she goes airborne." He said nothing further, finding those were the only things they really had to do in the fight.  
  
Coming up to her still walking, Twilight gave the woman a smile as they finally came to the third floor bedroom. There was a large heart-shaped lock that held together thick chains, preventing anyone entry into the room. Reaching up, Twilight inserted the key and twisted. A whirling noise of gears turning sounded before the lock split in the middle, looking like a broken heart, and the chains fell apart, allowing the door to be opened.  
  
"Thank you. You come inside..." Yeta stated as she led the way. The 9 Heroes glanced to one another before heading inside.  
  
The room was fairly warm, covered in a lavish carpet while drapery hung up, though they were covered in thick dust and cobwebs. The bed sat off to the side, as if designated for a princess or noble lady to have to herself, along with the beautiful vanity and settee that scattered around the room.  
  
Across from the door they entered, hung a strange shape that reflected in the light from the stained glass windows.  
  
"Please... this way, uh..." She stated, leading them closer to where the mirror hung. Slowly, they all approached with her. The details started to become clearer as they stood behind her as she gazed into her reflection.  
  
"Here... mirror. You look at it, uh.." She looked into the surface, the runic etchings dancing under the surface that glowed mysteriously.  
  
"Uh... so pretty..." she admired, glancing at herself from each side. Twilight knew what was going to happen.  
  
"Pretty.... uh... So pretty..."

Twilight could see her starting to twitch and he stepped a bit closer to her.  
  
"Yeta... are you okay?" He asked her, but got no response as she twitched, still staring at her reflection.  
  
"Pretty... Pretty... mirror... lovely..." She mumbled.  
  
"Yeta. You should get away from the mirror." That was clearly the wrong thing that Hyrule said, as suddenly her head whipped around, showing her monstrous visage of red eyes and sharp teeth.  
  
" **NOT TAKE MIRROR!!!** " She screeched out. Twilight jumped back, as did everyone else, from her sudden shout. The glass windows began to shatter above them all, letting in the frigid cold from outside. The floor suddenly was encased in ice as Yeta began to float up with the mirror, the two fusing into one, and just as they had regained their footing, they glanced up to see that she no longer was herself, but encased a mixture of carved ice and snow.  
  
"YOU DIDN'T SAY HOW BIG IT WOULD BE!!!" Legend exclaimed as he looked up at the towering monster.  
  
"Less talk, more dodging!" Twilight explained as she started to bounce around the room, destroying the various bits of furniture before they froze on the ground as well. Wind gave a yelp as he skid to the side, attempting to dodge her aim at him. She was slow for now, but Twilight knew that with each passing moment she was going to get bigger.  
  
He pulled out the Ball and Chain, gaining his momentum with his swing as everyone danced around to dodge her attacks. When she seemed to come towards him, he gave a shout and released it. The iron ball smacked into the first icy coating, revealing another carved layer beneath.  
  
"It's like one of those weird nesting dolls!" Warriors shouted as he took bounced off of a piece of broken furniture, trying to distract her from going after Four, who had slipped on the ice.

The towering ice mass didn't seem to have a pattern in going after any one of the Links, as if she wasn't even seeing anything but just mindlessly moving about the ice rink. Twilight gave another swing and another layer of ice was destroyed.  
  
"Is this all there is?" Wild asked from behind Twilight, and he had to roll away from her attempt at crushing him.  
  
"No!" Twilight grunted as he managed to swing again, gritting his teeth as the pain in his chest flared up once more, but he had to keep fighting. He had to keep fighting.  
  
Layer after layer he cracked off, but as she grew smaller, her speed grew faster. After the 4th time he cracked the ice layer, the ice appearance changed to look something like a dancer, and a circle of Mini-Freezards circled her.  
  
"Don't let them touch you!" Twilight shouted as they were shot out, and he could hear the other's grunt or shout as they tried to dodge out of the way. With a shout, he threw the weapon once more. The next layer allowed her quicker movement, but she was slowed with the hit.  
  
Twilight couldn't slide out of the way from the oncoming rush, and all Twilight could do was brace himself and use the Ball as a possible shield.  
  
He felt her smack into him, and his back hit the wall behind him. Grunting, he nearly dropped his heavy weapon, but it pressed in to the way his ribs were still bruised from earlier, making the pain flare up.  
  
 _"Why does it still hurt?"_ He thought briefly, wondering why the potion didn't stop the tugging and pain he felt in his chest. But he couldn't dwell on it, taking the chance to swing once more at her, leaving the 6th layer to be revealed.  
  
It was luck that came and gave him the last chance to attack. Her icy armor was removed, as she was sent back to the wall in her normal self. The heroes caught their breath for a moment, thinking that it was over with, but Twilight knew that wasn't the case.

Yeta hovered in the air for a moment before rising up into the air. Twilight knew he had to warn them all.  
  
"Whatever you do, keep moving! And watch your reflection!" He called out, pushing himself off the wall as they looked up. She gave a cry, a icy cage surrounded her, as did 10 pillars of carved ice that surrounded her in a circle.  
  
It was a game of running in circles, hoping and praying they weren't the ones being aimed as they watched the ice pillars circle for a moment. Twilight was the target, as he shouted for Legend to take the ball and Chain, as moved as quickly as he could on the slick, mirror-like surface of the ice. He didn't dare look back, counting the sound of heavy thuds behind him.  
  
The 10th was just to his right and he dove out of the way, turning his head to see Legend looking confused.  
  
"Break one of them! Quick!" He screamed and scrambled to catch his footing once more. With a shout, Legend did just that, catching 3 of the pillars and shattering them. Legend rolled the ball and chain back towards Twilight, and as he caught the chain, Twilight looked at the ice on the floor.  
  
He watched as they circled him for a second, before moving to hover over Sky.  
  
"Sky! Move through the opening! Look down!" He called out, and the other could see what he talked about before he was scrambling as quickly as he could through the opening made from the destruction caused by Legend.  
  
His timely movement just that, timely, as the other 7 came crashing down, as if to block him in, and then Blizzeta crashed down as well, as if to try and crush him. Twilight slid into place and with a cry of pain, tossed the ball. It smacked into her icy cage, the top portion cracking off as she hit the wall once more.  
  
"How much longer!?" Warriors shouted out, trying to see what he could do to help, but he realized there wasn't much. Wind was clinging to his arm, trying to keep balance even with his new boots.  
  
"Just... just a few more times!" Twilight panted out, hand to his chest

It was a rinse and repeat, all of them working to keep everyone from being crushed. After the third round, she hit the wall, her cry of anguish echoing around as she thrashed in the air. She gave one last cry before she crashed to the ground, the ice melting away and the darkness that had covered her floating around.  
  
The darkness turned into small particles, then into reflective shards, then forming into the large mirror piece from before. Twilight groaned as he stood up, trying to catch his breath and slowly moved towards it.  
  
"Don't touch it," he grunted out, coming to the mirror that floated in the air, spinning slowly and reflecting light around the room when it caught the sunlight.  
  
"It's... it's dark magic." He stood upright, the ache in his chest a constant throb. He glanced to see the other's gathering their wits as they could see Yeta lay on the floor, apparently unconscious form the possession that had apparently happened.  
  
"Is she gonna be okay?" Twilight heard Wind ask, and Twilight looked over to the youngest hero.  
  
"Yeah. She's gonna be okay." Twilight explained with a soft smile, and ignored the mirror for a minute as he came over to Yeta. He caught from the corner of his eye something, but he didn't think too much on it as he gently helped sit the poor woman up.

Yeta gave a groan as she was roused, but before Twilight could say anything, there was a thunderous cry of 'No.' He only had a chance to look up, seeing the racing form of Yeto, blinded by his fear and concern for Yeta, barreled past everyone, and knocked Twilight away.  
  
Straight into the Mirror.  
  
Twilight could feel the way the cold object pressed into his back, and he had a moment to look up, seeing everyone's stunned face as suddenly, everything went black.  
  
 _She left you...  
  
She broke your heart...  
  
Left you alone with nothing to help you.  
  
Left with so many questions.  
  
Why not try to get back to her?  
  
Why not find your Moon once more, Mournful Howler?  
  
Why not take back what she destroyed?_

Time felt his stomach drop the moment Twilight had been pushed aside, one eye wide as he watched dark, possessive shadows engulf Twilight, and he turned to Yeto and Yeta.  
  
"Get out!" Time shouted, catching their attention. "Run! Get out of here!" Yeto turned to see the dark form that was now rising up. It went from humanoid, growing taller than Twilight was, the dark shadows encasing and keeping the features obscured. His arms elongated, feet shifting with a painful snap and crunch into something akin to an animal, as the shadow that was Twilight's face morphed into something like a canine. The sounds of bones snapping and morphing, how his whole body bulged with muscles and mass.  
  
From his forehead, a bright glowing eye appeared, and then where his normal eye would be, 6 more, red as blood and dripping with malice. It's maw opened, showing rows of teeth as it towered over even Yeto. The shadows dissipated and revealed the horror that was before them.  
  
It was as if Twilight crossed over with Wolfie, human and yet wolf, a mixture of both with darkness pouring out of his posture. From where his chest was, lay a glowing gem of silver that snaked over his whole body, embedded into his skin like a parasite, dripping black blood over the ground.  
  
With a howling roar up to the ceiling, the being that had been Twilight gave such a mournful sound, before it's grief turned to rage. With a loud growl, it turned to look at Yeto, who wasted no time in picking up his wife and leaving for safety.  
  
"Twilight!" Wild shouted, horror on his face at the monster that his friend had become. But Twilight didn't listen, attempting to crush them with an over-sized paw, claws thick, black, and leaving gouges not only in carpet, but into stonework beneath as well.

"Everyone move!" Time shouted, and they all scattered. They had just finished fighting something that Twilight fought by himself, but now, they had to fight against their friend. Possessed by the same darkness that has shown in the once beautiful mirror.  
  
"What do we do!?" Wind shouted as he watched Twilight attempt to charge after Legend, who rolled away and raised his shield up to block a blow that had aimed for his head. Time didn't know the answer to that, and he didn't know how to even begin answering that. But before he could say anything, Four pulled out his bow and aimed.  
  
"I'm sorry, Twi!" With that shout, Four released the arrow, but the aim was off, striking into his shoulder.  
  
Howler gave a cry of pain, before turning his burning eyes in the direction of where the pain came from. Those eyes narrowed and without warning he moved to all four limbs and charged with surprising speed. Four gave a yelp as he dived out of the way. But when they expected Twilight to hit the wall, his claws caught the carpet and he quickly righted himself as he made to charge again, all jagged teeth and raging eyes.  
  
Four was encased in a red glow suddenly, and the strike that would have stabbed into him was deflected, the red tint around him never leaving. The surprise had the beast stunned, and he did trip over himself. Hyrule was up, hands glowing the same red color as he stared down the beast.  
  
"Get up! He's not like everything else." Time moved to try and intercept the beast that was Howler, and with the upward swing he had sliced along the forearm, but also catching against the pulsating gem that was in his chest.  
  
A loud howl of pain echoed, before Time was struck aside. Though Time wasn't one to stay down.  
  
Another arrow whizzed by and buried itself into the center eye in his forehead. Howler shouted in pain, hands coming up to clutch his face as he thrashed around, trying to dislodge the painful object that spewed blood onto his fur and onto the floor. One of Wild's arrows at that.

Rushing forward, Time stabbed several times into the gem, seeing it crack a few times as Howler gave shouts of pain, before he swiped once more at time.  
  
"That's it!" Warriors shouted, gripping his sword and shield. "That's how we've gotta defeat him." Wild was already nocking another arrow, though his hand trembled slightly. Wind was also doing the same, though his face expressed more than what Wild's face did.  
  
Time watched as Howler pulled the arrow out, black blood spewing for a moment, as it sealed itself once more. Howler gave a roar and ducked away from the arrows that had been aimed at him, growing smarter with each minute that he fought..  
  
"He knows what's up!" Time heard Hyrule shout, everyone now scrambling to keep the beast in their sights as they tried to find the opening necessary.  
  
"How do we beat him then? He's a Hero like us?" Wind asked, as everyone was slowly being drawn together in the center. They were begin circled like a pack of deer against a larger pack of wolves.  
  
They were prey against one hunter.  
  
"We'll figure it out," Time said, though he knew his heart was bleeding for the Pup. Suddenly, Mournful Howler changed his direction and used the momentum of the wall to jump up.  
  
"MOVE!" Time shouted and they all scattered again, the ground cracking with the force of impact.  
  
"Hyaaa!" Time looked to see Hyrule having cast a spell, jumping up high in the air, and he had his sword pointed downwards. The magical blade pierced into the same eye, making Howler scream in agony as he tried to rip Hyrule off his face.  
  
Legend was quicker, taking his sword and delivering quick blows, Warriors coming up to do the same. Though Howler was quicker to recover, as he threw off the three Heroes and removed the weapon, tossing it aside. They could see the eye, having been ravaged by the magical blade now closing it's wounds and peering at them all once again.  
  
"How... How is he still standing?" Sky asked beside Time, and the older Hero didn't have an answer for that.

Blood dripped down from the wounds on Howler's face, lip lifted in a snarl as he heaved. The silvery gem in the middle of his chest was cracked open, but still mostly intact from the strikes that it had sustained.  
  
" **Midna...** " he growled out, looking around for a moment as 7 eyes looked into the shadows at his feet.  
  
" **Why? Why hurt?** " He mumbled before he gave a loud roar, attempting to swipe at the shadows with one paw, as he clutched his head with the other. He thrashed for a moment, as if in pain, and Wind took this moment to try and get one more hit in, but the the thrashing only proved to be an obstacle.  
  
" **WHY!!?? WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME!?** " Howler cried out a mournful howl. But in his moment of distraction, Sky and Time raced forward, their blades plunging into the pulsating gem in his chest.  
  
His howl was cut off, maw open in shock as his eyes stared upwards at the ceiling. It was silent before the silver gem shattered, their blades piercing into flesh.  
  
With howls of pain and rage, Mournful Howler swiped around him in his blind pain, knocking Sky and Time over into Wind and Wild. They watched as Twilight seized up in a frozen position, arms clawing above his head before he gave a cry of grief, before it was cut off, his form growing dark like shadows, and then it burst apart.  
  
No longer was he a beast, but he laid on the ground, unconscious from everything, as the mirror once again formed, hovering in the air innocently. As if it didn't just cause them all to turn and fight one of their friends.

Time moved as quickly as he could, coming over to help lift up Twilight. The other hero groaned, head rolling as his eyes fluttered open, though they were unseeing to anything around him.  
  
"Wha..." he whispered, eyes looking beside Time as his vision shifted. He thought he could hear a laugh, familiar and just heart wrenching, as he swore he saw a familiar shape.  
  
Though when he blinked to clear his eyes, it was gone, leaving him with 8 faces looking down at him.  
  
"What was I...?" He asked, voice thick as everything slowly came back.  
  
"Did I... hurt anyone?" He asked, face twisting in a grimace at the mere thought.  
  
"Not seriously, thank Hylia." Hyrule reassured, giving him a small smile. Warriors nodded, though he had a troubled look on his face. Twilight carefully sat up as he looked up at the mirror shard floating just before them.  
  
"You know Midna?" Warriors asked, and Twilight froze, before looking up to the army captain.  
  
"How do you know her?" Twilight asked, the pain starting once more in his chest at the mentioning of her name.  
  
"She was there... when everything happened in my adventure. Along with a few others." Warriors looked away for a moment.  
  
"She used dark magic and some weird wolf-like creatures of shadow... But how do you know her?"  
  
Twilight said nothing for a moment before he looked away, towards his hands.  
  
"She... she was the one to guide me. She was there through everything... and then..." He trailed off, clenching his fists for a moment. The hurt and rage in his heart from her leaving, the shattering of the mirror and watching her dissipate, to never be seen again, brought tears to his eyes.  
  
"After all we did together, saving my home, stopping the evil... she severed everything, light from shadow, leaving me to pick up the pieces." He gave a cry of grief as he slammed his fist onto the cold stone beneath him.  
  
"She worked her way into my heart, only to shatter it!"

No one knew how to help as Twilight seemed to finally process what he went through, hunched over as he covered his mouth, as if trying to hold back his cries and tears. He was so small, it made Time's heart ache for him. Reaching out, Time laid his hand on his back, and just offered silent support.  
  
The whole room was silent save for the sounds of grief left locked away for far too long, as a heart blocked with ice shattered right before all of them.  
  
And no one knew how to heal a broken heart.

“ _Almost... he just slipped past me... But there is an opening...”_ A whisper in the shadows muttered, but none heard over the loud sobs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost 9k words for just this chapter
> 
> How did it get that out of hand??!! But I'm sure that all of you enjoyed it in one way or another. It was a bit of a doozy to write, but I had fun with it.
> 
> To all of those that followed along with this story, thank you! I want to hear what part you liked heh most, and also where I could do better with my writing.


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